


May There be Quiet Days, for Miles and Miles to Come

by MuffyKastel



Category: X -エックス- | X/1999
Genre: Anime/Manga Fusion, Crackish-Angst, F/M, Friendship, M/M, Personal Headcanons & Theories, Post-Canon, Recovery, Sakurazukamori!Subaru, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, found family-ish
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:07:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 21,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26776369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MuffyKastel/pseuds/MuffyKastel
Summary: Humanity may have been saved, but among the dragons only six remain.
Relationships: Aoki Seiichirou & Nekoi Yuzuriha & Shiyuu Kusanagi, Aoki Seiichirou/Aoki Shimako, Aoki Seiichirou/Kasumi Karen, Arisugawa Sorata/Kishuu Arashi, Kishuu Arashi & Shirou Kamui & Sumeragi Subaru, Monou Fuuma/Shirou Kamui, Nekoi Yuzuriha/Shiyuu Kusanagi, Sakurazuka Seishirou/Sumeragi Subaru
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	May There be Quiet Days, for Miles and Miles to Come

**Author's Note:**

> Aka, how I think X ends. 
> 
> Originally posted on FF.net in 2019, this version has been edited and formatted differently for a easier reading experience.

There’s only six of them left.

Kamui.

Arashi.

Subaru.

Yuzuriha.

Kusanagi.

Aoki.

Fuuma’s body lay on the floor in front of them, one of the Shinken’s sticking out of his stomach. The other sword lay idle in his hand and Kamui is tempted to take it and throw it off the roof.

They crowd around the body in a circle, unsure and uncertain of what to do next.

Where do they go from here?

//…\\\

(Kusanagi is the first to leave. Aoki follows right after, and the remaining three have to drag Kamui away from the body.)

Nokoru stares at Yuzuriha intently. The girl is smiling and unseen to him, a gray dog is next to her with an equally wide grin on its adorable face. The rijicho then side-eyed the much taller man next to her, a large buff military man who was on the other side during the Final Day. Kusanagi Shiyuu, a part of the JSDF and the only survivor of the Dragons of Earth. Withstanding Subaru and Arashi’s betrayal that is.

They are the only two to agree to this group therapy he set up for all the remaining survivors.

Why, not even Aoki-san agreed to it! Nokoru wants to pretend to be stunned but he honestly can’t.

All he does is sigh and call the therapist in. He has other things to attend too, like tracking down Sumeragi-san, Shirou-san and Kishuu-san.

God knows where they wandered off, but he knows they’re alive.

_It's two days after_ the end.

_It’s now 2000._

_And Yuzuriha waves sadly at the gates of the CLAMP Campus as Kamui and Arashi both walk off. There’s not much in their hands and she doesn’t know where they’re going. All she knows is that they need this time for themselves._

_To mourn. To cry. To not be around any reminders of the final day._

_Of which she was._

_After all, she still had Kusanagi._

_Arashi did not have Sorata._

_Kamui did not have Kotori_ and _Fuuma._

_She feels someone’s hands on her shoulders. Turning around, Keiichi Segawa gives her a curt smile and escorts her back to the mansion._

Kusanagi surveys the destruction down below. From the helicopter, for some reason, it looks far worse than being on the ground. He groans inwardly, knowing he was somewhat responsible for this in the sense he was involved with the people that _did_ this. And of course, being the person that contributed _least_ to this event, he was the only one left to clean it up.

 _‘Thanks, you jerks,’_ He thinks bitterly.

The rest of the Dragons of Earth were partying it up in hell while he had to deal with the aftermath.

 _‘Well, it could be worse.’_ He muses internally at the fact that a few days ago, all of humanity would have ceased to exist. He should be grateful for this, to be alive, to live on…

But somewhere, deep inside, he’s just _not_.

His copilot murmurs something about this costing billions in repairs and Kusanagi can’t help but agree.

And he knows exactly _who_ should be paying for it.

(Only that none of the remaining dragons will and the rest were rotting in the afterlife, hopefully.)

Aoki returns home from work and seconds after entering through the door, his little girl pounces his legs.

His former ex-wife, now remarried (not that she knew about either or anything), smiles cheerfully and gives him a warm hug and peck on the check. He returns the favor, only because he has to.

Not because he _wants_ to.

Whenever he gets intimate with Shimako, his mind trails back to someone else, a beautiful woman with silky pale pink hair, garbed in lacey red. But he can’t leave her again, he already did it once and it killed him inside. He still loves her, his wife, but he can’t deny his heart belongs to someone else as well.

Someone luscious and someone gone in the flames that she created.

Karen would hate him forever if he left his wife again.

So Aoki never will.

Kamui brushes the blood off his knuckles. It flies, splattering on the dirty brick wall of the nightclub behind him but he doesn’t care. Is there anything to care for? He’s tempted to wipe the rest of it off on his clothes but then it would ruin what’s already so dirty. He doesn’t have that much cash left from whatever remaining funds Nokoru and the CLAMP Campus board had given him and he doesn’t want to spend personal Arashi’s stash.

Speaking of Arashi, where was she?

The music from inside the club blares into his eardrums, and he wonders how loud it must be inside. But like hell he’s going in there just to be hit on by disgusting, drunk men again. It's why he was outside and as much as he wanted more cash, drinks and food (how unbelievable, considering how much he loathed eating just a few months ago), he has a sense of standards. Arashi was inside, hopefully getting enough for both of them.

But if not, that was fine. He could go a few days without eating or drinking again.

Kamui hears the light tap of small heels and sees Arashi looking down at him. Her hair is up in a messy up-do and her dress is scrunched up from what he hopes wasn’t a sexual assault that he wasn’t there to defend her from.

“Here,” she hands him a couple dollars and a stale-looking pastry.

He takes it and thinks, ‘ _Damn, Sorata would hate to see you looking like this,’_

But in a weird way, they both need this.

He chomps on the hard muffin and while tempted to spit it out, swallows it down happily.

He hates her.

It’s a startling revelation to Aoki, because no, he did _not_ hate Yuzuriha, but rather he hated that she reminded him of Karen. It was terrifying, because it wasn't that Yuzuriha actually reminded him of Karen, but that it reminded them of the relationship they had. During their time at the mansion, where he and Karen would comfort the girl like parents would to a child.

And what of his own child? What did he think of her during those times?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

His focus was on Karen and Yuzuriha.

He would listen to Karen talk about one of the Seven Angels, Nataku, and how they viewed her as a mother. He recounted how Nataku would view Fuuma as their father and somewhere, deep inside it _hurt_.

(Sometimes, he wondered if the dragons had some special bond that pulled them together once they met. He feels his connections to his family, friends, co-workers and anyone non-dragon fade.)

Yuzuriha chats idly about the things going on in her life, about school, about Kusanagi. They both wonder where the other three remaining dragons wandered off too. They haven’t heard anything from Subaru and merely presume he really _did_ inherit the Sakurazukamori’s position and went off-grid to do his work. As for Kamui and Arashi…

Aoki shakes his head, not wanting to dwell on that topic. They were probably fine wherever they were.

Yuzuriha mentions something about going on a date with Kusanagi this weekend, and something overprotective boils inside of Aoki.

Instead, he congratulates her and smiles.

//…\\\

(Maybe in another life, he, Karen, Yuzuriha and Nataku could be a family of reality instead of dreams.)

Arashi stares at the ticket in hand. It’s been months since she and Kamui have been out of the streets, fighting for survival. It’s nothing neither of them aren’t used to, but the times have changed and the people that live in this world are far worse.

Using the last of their funds, Kamui urges her that they need to go to the outskirts of the city, into the more suburban areas of Japan.

She already has an inkling why, but she wonders if the former Sumeragi head would _really_ be there instead of, per say, his old apartment in Tokyo or in the old capital of Kyoto. It doesn’t make much sense. She knows Subaru has become the new Sakurazukamori, but she can’t fathom why Kamui would think he would be there of all places.

Admittedly, she wanted to go to Mt. Koya for obvious reasons, but she can’t face the monks. She can’t face them knowing she was the person their Sorata died for.

Going back to Ise is not an option, as much as she would like to. It would just stifle her as a person. It may have been her childhood home, but it’s not a place for the woman she has grown into.

Together, she and Kamui walk down the street and Arashi looks up at the sky. Now it seems their drifting has a purpose. To find someone like them, one who understands the loss of a lover. A wiser, older figure who has gone through many struggles before them and can…guide them? Arashi is not quite sure.

(“ _Sorata. I’m sorry. I don’t know what to do. Please, watch over me_ ,”)

Subaru takes a drag of a cigarette outside in the garden. Surrounded by the blooming camellias and sakura, he sighs and his dark black trench coat blows lightly in the wind. It’s still rather big on him, and he wonders if he should get it tailored or just get a new one that fits him, but he squashes that thought. 

He hates the idea of changing anything that’s Seishirou’s.

The Sakura Tree speaks to him through their connection, whining, and he vaguely wonders how Seishirou ever put up with the thing. It’s unsurprisingly hungry and Subaru takes a look at his hands.

An image flashes of them being covered in blood before being replaced with the reality of ash. Subaru drops the cigarette and stomps on it before walking back inside the ancient home.

The Sakurazuka manor is stunning, a perfect blend of ancient traditional Japanese styles and elegant Victorian English layouts. He wonders why Seishirou would leave such a beautiful place. He vastly prefers it over his old childhood home and all the apartments he’s stayed in before. Either way, it’s not like Subaru will ever get a chance to ask him. The gold eye in his head twitches slightly at the thought of its former owner.

He wanders around for a bit before finding himself in the living room, where the fax machine is set up. Thankfully for his mind, there are no jobs for him to do. Unfortunately, for his stress and ears, the damned tree complains of its hunger again. But Subaru has other things to worry about.

Under some official government notices, he’s missing.

Under others, his existence is kept completely hidden.

He wishes his grandmother would stop looking for him because going off grid was hard enough as is. Just choose another heir and get over it. His chances of survival during the Final Day were low anyways; there should have been a back-up head in training for the unspeakable. He thought changing his last name would be good enough, but walking out in public during the day is still such a hassle.

( _“Oh, Seishirou? How did you do it?_ ”)

( _“How did you become so unfeeling?_ ”)

//...\\\

(Is there any point to honorifics anymore? He and Seishirou were _how_ close now?)

Kusanagi and Aoki crowd around her and she fidgets with the phone in her hand.

Yuzuriha takes a deep breath.

“Here goes nothing,” She whispers unsurely and with her hand trembling, she presses the button.

Send.

**_Hi Kamui!_ **

**_Hi Arashi!_ **

And now they wait.

And carry on with their dragon meet-up date.

(The messages promptly get read and ignored. Not yet. Not now.)

Subaru’s first thought is _'how the hell did they find him’._

His second is _‘how the hell did they get here’._

And his third is _‘I should close the door and reopen it, and hope I was just seeing things’._

Because Subaru has to terrifyingly admit his sanity is not in the best place right now, at the moment, and probably forever.

Kamui and Arashi stand outside the door, beat-up, clothes torn in some places and their hair has grown considerably longer.

“Subaru…” Kamui’s soft voice murmurs and Arashi bows politely, her priestess training having never left her.

The Sakura Tree whispers about finally getting something to eat and Subaru annoyingly tells it to shut up, no they’re not food, _they are friends_.

_‘The Sakurazukamori does not have friends,’_

Subaru thinks for a moment.

_‘Well this one does. Now shut up or tomorrow’s client gets an extra week to live,’_

Subaru cordially lets the two teens inside.

//…\\\

(The Sakura Tree shrieks and wonders _what the hell_ was wrong with Seishirou to leave someone like _this_ as the new caretaker of the Sakura Grove.)

It miffs Kamui to know that he’s currently staying in the house of the Sakurazukamori, but it’s wildly not as bad as it seems. He’s staying in one of the guest rooms; the house has quite a few surprisingly, an entire section is practically dedicated to it. He wonders who in their right mind would want to stay in the home of a killer assassin, and then he remembers that _he_ is currently doing so and shuts up mentally. Arashi is in a room two doors down from him and Subaru stays in the master bedroom around the corner from the guest room hall.

Their days are dull. Kamui and Arashi mope around like lost souls.

They do relatively nothing around the house and Subaru doesn’t force them to. He lets them be, remembering a young boy who went catatonic for months after the love of his life betrayed him.

At night they have silent conversations, murmurs about memories and boys, it’s mostly Kamui and Arashi that are talking. Subaru, whenever present, chips in occasionally and gives his thoughts, his advice, whatever wisdom he can bestow upon two teens as broken as he. But it doesn’t take very long for them to realize that they’ve completely strayed the conversation away from Subaru.

“It’s always us talking,” Arashi starts one day with Subaru out on a grocery run. “He never talks to us about what’s going on in his life,” she continues sullenly, looking out into the garden. The camellias have died out but the Sakura still blooms, as it does here all year round.

“Do you really want him too?” Kamui snaps, thinking about what Subaru did for a living. He didn’t want to hear about killing people like it was nothing. It was bad enough walking past the fax machine and seeing clientele that _he knew_ weren’t going to see the light of day in a week or so.

“Kamui,” Arashi pronounces his name sternly. “We are free-loading in his home. We do _nothing_. It would be unwise to make our host feel left out,”

“B-but you know what he-” Kamui protests go void when Arashi only reinforces her glare.

“I’m not saying we press him about what he does. I’m saying we be more courteous.” She explains and Kamui lowers his gaze from her.

“Besides,” Arashi rests her head on the kotatsu and buries the rest of her body deeper into its warmth,

“I’m sure he doesn’t want to talk about those things either,”

Kamui sullenly nods his head in agreement and turns up the volume on the T.V.

//…\\\

It was certainly odd that he felt more like a clan head now than he did before, when he carried the Sumeragi name.

Before, his grandmother and his extended family members would just take care of everything. When it came time to do certain exorcisms, handling his finances, hiring drivers and more. It was almost like he was just a figure-head. Only being named heir because he was the most powerful person.

But now, he was in charge of his own household. He had to manage his own money and accounts, not like it ever really ran out due to how high-paying all these jobs were. He was taking care of two people under his roof, of whom were finally starting to become more active. He caught Kamui sweeping in one of the halls and Arashi wiping down the kotatsu table.

There were talks of getting the two teens to go back to school, but it seemed neither of them were intent on doing so. Where they were living, not too far outside the city, it wasn’t too difficult to get a job in the small shops along the road. Subaru was certain some of the older folks would be pleased to have some young help around.

Also, it would give Kamui and Arashi some pocket change to spend as they please, rather than rely on Subaru’s credit card to purchase their goods.

He sighs and falls back on his bed. Running a household was tough work, especially on his own. Maybe he should try to contact some extended Sakurazuka members? He never quite believed Seishirou was the only Sakurazuka, let alone the Sakurazukamori was a clan of one person.

He eyes the closet across the room and thinks of all the dusty, old rooms he has yet to go search through. He’s sure there’s some sort of contact information stored in there somewhere. In a weird way, he feels like he’d be intruding on Seishirou if he were to do so, and he was certain some important documents were going to be warded. But at the same time, hey, _he lived here now_. This was his house and he’d be goddamned if he didn’t uncover every secret it had.

Perhaps he’d ask Kamui and Arashi to help him look around one of these days.

//…\\\

Both Kamui and Arashi stare intently on the screens of their phones. It’s been how many months since they’ve received this message? And to think, they never responded. They were sure Yuzuriha was mad or had moved on from them once she realized they were never going to contact her.

Subaru moves his focus from the television and readjusts his mismatched eyes on the two teens across the kotatsu table.

“Something wrong?” He asks concerned.

Arashi sways her head, unsure of what to say while Kamui fidgets a bit.

After a moment, the violet-eyed boy responds, “We got a text…from Yuzuriha.”

“Oh,” Is all Subaru says before he turns his attention back to see the ending of the alien sci-fi movie they were watching.

Both teens assume that’s all he’s going to say in the conversation and resume their long internal debate of messaging back Yuzuriha, but they’re startled when he speaks again.

“Do you want to go visit her?”

Arashi shakes her head. “Ah no, it’s nothing like that,” She bites her lip, almost ashamed to say it. “She messaged us a few months ago but me and Kamui never responded…but now we feel like we should.”

“It’s been a long time,” Kamui murmurs and Subaru instantly realizes what they’re feeling.

Sighing, he rests his hand on the table to hold up his head. “Do what you think you should do,” He says plainly. “If she doesn’t respond then she doesn’t respond.” He adds.

“Well, we didn’t respond for months,” Arashi notes sullenly. “She has every right to ignore us,”

“I’d like to hope she does…Yuzuriha is not that type of person but…” Kamui still has lingering doubts. He’s watched way too many ‘nice’ people go down a dark turn. That included himself and the other two people in the room.

Arashi nods her head. “What would we even say…?”

“Say your safe,” Subaru responds quietly.

“Can we tell her that we’re with you?” Kamui questions and Subaru ponders for a moment.

On one hand, they were all dragons. The only ones left. And Yuzuriha had proved herself to be intelligent and mature for her age. But she would likely tell Aoki and Kusanagi, if she was still in contact with them that is. And that would lead to questions, concerns, maybe even trying to convince Kamui and Arashi to let them visit here…

“You can, but I’d rather this location to remain a secret.”

Kamui and Arashi decipher that code as: If she asks to visit, refuse and take your asses into the city to meet her yourself.

Both teens look at each other and give an affirmative nod. Arashi moves closer to Kamui and they decide to use his phone for a joint message.

//…\\\

**_Hey Yuzuriha, Kamui here. Sorry for the late reply. Me and Arashi are safe. We are currently staying with Subaru._ **

**_Hope everything’s well._ **

She has to reread the message a million times before it sinks in.

Yuzuriha squeals and dashes out of the mansion and onto the main campus, eagerly looking for someone.

Finally she crashes into Keichii and shoves her phone in his face. After a few moments of scanning the message, the two jump up into cheers.

She can’t wait to tell Kusanagi and Aoki!

//…\\\

Subaru reads the message over and over again. It makes him want to break the fax machine. Kamui passes by, going into the kitchen to get something quick to snack on and stops when he spots Subaru staring down a paper in the living room.

“Something wrong?” He asks.

Subaru sighs and shakes his head.

“One of my contacts in the government wants to meet with me privately. It’s concerning the Sumeragi Clan.”

“O-oh,” he stammers out unsurely. Subaru’s old family was a touchy subject he didn’t like to get involved in. “I thought they stopped looking for you?”

Subaru turns to look at him and gives a rare small smile.

“Kamui, the Sumeragi never stop looking,”

But the Sakurazukamori’s glimmer of sunshine quickly morphs into a frown.

“Though I honestly wish they would. It’s about to cause an uproar in internal politics if they don’t, all because they know I’m not dead.”

Kamui nods. Living with Subaru taught him that the spiritual balance of Japan is never something to be messed with. Unfortunately, it seemed the Sumeragi Clan wasn’t getting the hint that one if its own-it’s former head, of all people-did not want to be found and it would cause strife once they realized where and who he was now. While it was nice to know they cared, this was going to cause more problems that they all couldn’t handle.

Both men could only wonder what would happen if the Sumeragi Clan finds them. Not even Subaru had a good idea of what would happen to him once the truth came out. Would he be pressured to come back? To quit the job Seishirou had given him and mess up the balance of Japan? Would he…be killed?

Those are things he doesn’t want to find out and he never will, as long as he kept himself hidden.

“Anyways, all the places he’s proposed aren’t private enough. Honestly the only place I can think of that’s concealed enough is…” Subaru trails off and Kamui keeps his mouth shut because he already has an idea of what the older man is implying.

However, a new voice that has just woken up says it aloud.

“You want it here?”

Both men turn to see Arashi standing at the edge of the hallway. Her hair is tied up and she’s still in her pajamas. A previously odd sight a year ago has become a common occurrence in the new Sakurazuka house. Kamui supposes that bouncing from poor housing conditions to living on streets has made the former priestess uncaring of her appearance. Because really, to him, he’s seen the worst of her and so has Subaru at this point, so there’s nothing to hide or upkeep.

Subaru tilts his head to the side, “Well yeah…” he drawls. “Do you mind going out that day? I haven’t mentioned that I’m living with anyone and I suppose it would look odd seeing how young you two are.”

“Aw, do we have too?” Kamui whines in a plaintive voice. Admittedly, neither teen has actually left the property since arriving. The most they did was go outside in the garden, of which was heavily protected by high walls.

Arashi shakes her head and walks past them both into the kitchen.

“It would be beneficial,” Subaru points out. “Besides, it would be odd for the Sakurazukamori to be living with people that aren’t related to them.”

Kamui pouts. “We can…pass…for…” He’s grasping at straws here in order to not leave the house. As much as he hated to admit it, there was a resemblance between himself and Subaru. Maybe it could be stretched to Arashi too. They all wore that stern, downcast expression most of the time anyways.

“…siblings?”

Subaru shoots him a look.

“Kamui, I was meant to throw away my old life, remember?”

Ah damn, he was right. Kamui contemplated harder.

“Of the…former Sakurazukamori?”

Arashi, who was fixing herself up a few slices of toasts, has to stifle an urge to chuckle at the response. Subaru looks at Kamui with the dullest, most bored expression in his life.

“It’s just one day.”

Kamui grits his teeth and sighs. There’s no winning with Subaru.

Suppose they might take Yuzuriha up on that offer to hang out after all.

Arashi shakes her head and finishes up her toast. She heads back into the living room to see Kamui sitting at the kotatsu angrily with his arms crossed. Subaru still looks distressed as he reads through more of the letter and leans up against a wall for support. She takes a seat next to the violet-eyed boy and nudges him.

“I for one, am excited to head into the city.”

Kamui blinks. “Really? Why?”

“Because it’s changed.” Arashi ponders for a moment, thinking back to everything that’s happened. The destruction from the earthquakes, explosions…the Final Day…She was sure it was repaired by now. But also on the people she spent time with there, Karen’s motherly advice, Aoki’s comforting support, Yuzuriha’s cheery attitude. And Sorata…how he uplifted her, how he was vocal about her, how he was always there for her when he could be.

She missed it. She missed it all.

Of course, not all of her memories were still in Tokyo.

But some still were. Why throw them away?

“And I’ve changed. You’ve changed. Let’s go back to a different city as different people,”

Kamui’s eyes go round in realization before allowing them to droop and his mouth curves into a soft smile.

“You’re right,” He nods, “You’re absolutely right.”

Subaru finally tears his eyes away from the letter.

“So it’s decided? You’ll both go?”

Both teen’s nod and he gives a sigh of relief.

“Perfect,”

“Though,” Arashi speaks up, “I don’t believe we have proper attire for going out for a day in the city,”

And it was true. Most of the garments they owned now were house clothes and the occasional fancy nightlife clothes they wore when they were living on the streets and going to clubs to make a quick buck. And they did have a few shirts they swiped from Fuuma and Sorata’s closets but that was beside the point. Neither Kamui or Arashi owned ‘casual’ or ‘everyday’ clothes anymore.

Subaru clicks his teeth. “Guess I’ll have to take you both out for shopping…or we can search through the house for something?” From the few storage rooms and boxes Subaru had gone through upon moving in, he’d found out that Seishirou hadn’t cleaned out a lot of his old clothes…or his mother’s for that matter. Perhaps they’d find something suitable that fit the two teens without having to make a run into the city twice.

But Kamui shook his head. “Let’s go out.”

For one thing, Kamui did not think any of Seishirou’s old clothes would fit him and two, it reminded him of the first night he spent in the house. He almost got a heart attack seeing Subaru walk around in one of Seishirou’s old shirts like it was nothing.

In _just_ the shirt.

Though he had to admit, Subaru’s legs were a rather nice sight. And that he still got minor heart attacks every time Subaru came out of his room in something of Seishirou’s attire.

Arashi nodded. “I remember you saying there was a boutique nearby, right? We could go there,”

Subaru had to think back to his daily grocery runs and the rare ‘moment of peace’ walks he gave himself from returning from missions to recall the ‘so-called’ place he’d mentioned before.

“Ah right. The place run by the old couple. We could go there,”

Both teens gave noises of agreement and Subaru leaned up against the wall again. He has his hand out and he begins to count through the things he needs to plan out.

“First, we need to figure out what you both need. Then we’ll have to budget what we’re going to spend. And then, we have to figure out a day we can all go that doesn’t conflict with my research and it has to be before the visit obviously…”

Subaru continues trailing off things they need to do, which included: if they wanted to buy lunch that day, or eat home and then go, or if they wanted to buy something for dinner and bring it home and so forth.

Kamui nudges Arashi.

“This is a lot more difficult than I thought…”

“To be fair, this is the first time we’ve all gone out together since we’ve arrived.”

“Plus, Subaru doesn’t like to go out during the day unless he has to,”

“Yeah, this is riskier than I anticipated…”

But Subaru waves his hand dismissively. “No, no, it’s nothing like that.” He says as he places a hand on his temple. “I’ve just never…managed all of this before.”

Admittedly, it was easier just keeping Kamui and Arashi in the house and just buying food for them when necessary. Subaru hadn’t realized how blessed he actually was because they never really asked for anything. Hell, he was the one forcing them to go out because he had to for his job.

“So this is what it’s like to run a household…” Subaru says to himself. “It makes me feel like a parent,”

Arashi perks up. “Oh? Are you saying we’re your children, Subaru-san?”

Kamui chokes on the slice of toast he swiped from Arashi’s plate and Subaru barely gives a response to her question. He murmurs something like ‘yeah, I suppose so’ and walks out the room still listing things on his fingers of what he needed to do for their upcoming outing.

Arashi has to painfully admit pink is not her color. Sure, the outfit itself looked nice and Yuzuriha certainly thought so (“Oh, you’re so cute, Arashi-san!!” she squealed upon seeing her) but it didn’t suit her face and her style. The shirt was white with pale pink stripes and her skirt was a pastel pink. Even her sneakers were pink! Kamui definitely got the better deal of the two in his yellow sweater and washed-out blue jeans.

He smirks at her fluster under Yuzuriha’s comments.

She kicks him under the table.

Kamui swears under his breath because damn she kicks hard and _why did her sneakers have to be the fancy kind with wedges?!?_

Yuzuriha looks at him curiously.

“Ignore him. He’s being stupid.” Arashi says eloquently and Yuzuriha takes a lasting look at Kamui still wincing.

“Y-yeah…you know me…just being dumb as fu-”

Another kick.

Arashi’s glare read: No swearing.

Kamui gives a weak nod and rubs his shins under the table.

They decided to meet Yuzuriha near a cafe by the train station they came out of when entering the city. In reality, Tokyo hadn’t really changed that much since everything in 1999, even though it was already nearing the end of 2000. This was mostly because everything was still under construction. Maybe Arashi had been too optimistic in her words from a few weeks earlier about the city having changed.

Ah well, at least part of her words still rang true.

Yuzuriha gleams under the sun’s light. Her hair had gotten a little longer at the back, so it was starting to curl around her neck. Her body developed into something ganglier, while she was still short, her limbs had gotten longer and she had a clearly athletic frame. The new Inuki was asleep by his mistress’ feet under the table.

“Whoa, it seems your hair got longer Arashi-san!” She notes and Arashi lifts her bangs with her hand to see for herself.

Yuzuriha was right. Her bangs were longer and fell more into her eyes and her hair went to edge of her back now. Arashi hadn’t felt a need to cut it or rather, she hadn’t felt motivated to cut it and living in a house with Kamui and Subaru-who didn’t care how she looked-barely made her realize it. Sure she knew it was getting _longer_ , but there was no one to tell her to upkeep it like at Ise.

“Seems so,” She places her hands back on the table elegantly. “Do you like it?”

“Of course!” Yuzuriha smiles. “It looks great on you-and oh, Kamui-san, your hair has gotten fluffier!” The younger girl leans over the table at him. “Can I touch it?”

Kamui shrugs. “Go for it, not like it matters.”

Yuzuriha carefully pats his head and giggles before pulling herself back into her seat.

“So how’s Subaru-san? What’s it like living with him?” She inquires. She’s aware he’s the new Sakurazukamori, having known nearing the end of the Final Year when she found he switched sides and taken up the position. It had shocked her to her core; the gentle and kind Sumeragi Head had become essentially a killer assassin in his lover’s place.

Both Kamui and Arashi turn to each other for a moment, not sure of what to say.

“Subaru is fine,” Kamui speaks first and slowly. “He’s still getting used to managing everything and is very busy.”

Yuzuriha nods. “I’d…imagine,”

“We usually help out around the house.” Arashi adds and Kamui shoots her a look that read: really? But it’s not a total lie. They _did_ help…just sparingly.

“It’s very big,” She peppers in for good measure. Yuzuriha recalls back to some earlier information she got from them over the phone when they were planning their meet up date. “You said it was…the former Sakurazukamori’s home, right?”

Kamui bobs his head. “Yeah, Subaru said he thought it’d make sense to live there to do his work. You’d be surprised at how huge it is though. Doesn’t seem like the type of place that a lot of people would want to live at.”

“Yes, there are still portions of the house we haven’t uncovered yet.” Arashi supplies.

“Oh,” Yuzuriha takes in all the information and then inquires, “Are you two going to be living there permanently from now on then?”

Both older teens blink. It was something that actually hadn’t given much of a thought about. Both Kamui and Arashi were so used to drifting and moving from one place to another that it actually hadn’t hit them that they had settled into the home quite nicely over the past few months. Neither of them thought about leaving and Subaru hadn’t made any push to kick them out either. In fact, he seemed to be preparing himself for the long haul of them staying probably forever.

And really…was there anywhere else they could go?

“Most likely,” Arashi says quietly before taking a sip of her watermelon lemonade.

“Whoa!” Yuzuriha laughs and takes a quick bite of the strawberry Danish on her plate. “It must be so nice living in a big house outside the city! You’ve got to show me sometime!”

Kamui feigns a smile, knowing damn well Subaru didn’t want any more people to come over than need be. “We’ll see,”

“Anyways,” Arashi interjects wisely, “How has everything been for you, Yuzuriha?”

“Ah, well-!” The girl immediately jumps into a tirade of events that has happened to her over the past few months.

“Clamp Campus shut down for two months after everything happened, but they still let me stay in the mansion! I’m really the only one who lives in the mansion now…it’s kinda lonely. Sometimes Keichii and Kusanagi come stay with me but most of the time it’s just me. I kind of wander the campus, trying to locate any secrets or hidden doors and stuff,” She laughs a bit sheepishly at the end.

Kamui’s interest peaks. “How is Segawa-kun?”

“Oh, he’s doing great! He really misses you, ya know! Complains all the time that you never call,”

Both Arashi and Kamui can hear the exaggeration in her voice, along with slips in tone that reveal that it was more Yuzuriha that felt that way instead of Keichii.

“He has plans on transferring when it comes time to apply for university. I don’t know if I’ll stay or leave…I mean I want to stay at CLAMP Campus but I…” _don’t want to be alone_ falls silently off her lips.

Yuzuriha admits that she had plans on asking Kamui and Arashi to come back but…

They seemed so much happier now. Living with Subaru clearly did them both so good. Even if there is an air of sadness around them still, it’s obvious they enjoy being outside the city more than being in it.

“Making those decisions is hard…and if you transfer then you won’t be able to stay in the mansion.” Arashi points out.

There’s an awkward laugh. “Yeah, Aoki-san offered to house me if I decide to leave but I don’t want to intrude on him and his family, ya know.”

Kamui reflected on the father hen on the Dragons of Heaven. Seiichirou Aoki had certainly lost a lot during the Final Day, he gave up his family for the greater good and his nephew was gone for good. Daisuke Saiki…another of Fuuma’s victims. It hurts to think about. He’s just happy Aoki gets to be with his family again.

“I understand,” He says after a pause. “But that doesn’t sound too bad at all. I’m sure Aoki-san wouldn’t mind if he put up the offer in the first place.”

“I know, I know,” Yuzuriha chides herself. “But he has his family back! I don’t want to get in the way of that,”

“I don’t think it hurts to think about,” Arashi muses. “You never know how it might end up. It could work for the better,” She says while her mind is on her own living situation with Kamui and Subaru.

Yuzuriha looks down and sensing the shift in quality, Kamui asks, “Did you tell the Rijicho where we are?”

The shorter girl shakes her head. “Nuh-uh. I know you guys don’t want to be found. And he’ll flip if he finds out your living with the Sakurazukamori,”

The two teens wince at the thought of him finding out and sending a swat team to the house to retrieve them. Living with Subaru taught them a lot of things about the balance of Japan. They may not agree with what he did (the man himself didn’t agree with what he did either) but if it helped protect Japan as a whole then…

Kamui breathes a sigh of relief and Arashi murmurs, “Good call.”

Yuzuriha fiddles with the straw in her soft drink. “Something tells me though that he already knows where you guys are. But I still won’t say anything because that’d be stupid,”

“Yeah,” Kamui nods. “Wouldn’t surprise me if he already has an idea. Probably just waiting for confirmation or something before he takes any action,”

Yuzuriha nods while sipping on her drink and Arashi cuts into a piece of her strawberry shortcake. Kamui eyes his unfinished sandwich and debates with himself if he wants more or if he’s full. It seems that the three of them have lapsed into silence, unsure of what else is there to talk about. There’s so much…but would they be wise topics to discuss?

That is, until a bubbly voice yells from down the street.

“Hey! I thought I told you guys to not start eating without me!”

//…\\\

They all felt pretty bad for deciding to meet and talk privately before Keiichi showed up. The blond boy still didn’t have much of a clue about the dragons and the whole Apocalypse that almost occurred last year. But he was still their friend, not to mention he was looking after Yuzuriha. And seeing as how Kamui and Arashi both left her, they felt like they owed him the pleasure of reuniting.

To catch him up to speed, the three of them reiterated some of the information they deemed ‘safe’ for him to know about.

“So you’re living with Sumeragi-san?” Keiichi mused curiously. “And in a big fancy house? Sounds sweet! You’ve got to bring me over some time!”

“That’s what I said!” Yuzuriha agreed.

Kamui and Arashi could only blankly smile and nod. As if.

“You guys look a lot healthier,” Keichii notes good-naturedly. “It’s a good thing Sumeragi-san is taking care of you or you both would’ve withered away by now!”

They all have to crack up at that. It’s an odd thought to think about; the idea of Subaru being able to take care of anyone was laughable just a year ago, seeing as how he could barely take care of himself. But strangely, he seemed to settle into a caretaker role easily and was doing a decent job. Even if Kamui and Arashi were becoming a little lazy under his care. It was almost as if becoming the Sakurazukamori was a good thing…

Kamui has a mentally slap himself. That was an _insane_ thought. Sure Subaru had become more put together following Seishirou’s death but his occupation was still a point of contention. That wasn’t even including his secluded lifestyle.

“Though…” Keichii stops laughing first and trails off a bit, “Sorry if this comes off as too intrusive, but I have to ask,” He leans over the table at the two normally stoic teens. “Why’d you both decide to live with him?”

Yuzuriha wisely stays silent during the matter and moves to take a sip of her drink.

“It was…a spur of the moment decision, really.” Kamui admits slowly. He was sure Keichii thought they moved in with Subaru right away after they left Clamp Campus. But that was far from the truth.

“We thought he could help us,” Arashi states. “All of us went through similar circumstances. It just felt right that we go in and live with each other,”

Keichii lights up. “Oh! Like a support system?”

“Heh?” The three other teens look at him quizzically.

“You know,” Keichii waves his hand and takes a bite out of his Danish. “Like you all lift each other up and stuff?” He explains with his mouth full.

“Oh,” Arashi nods.

“Ah,” Kamui has to think for a moment. “That makes sense, yeah.”

“I guess we all do that for each other,” Arashi murmurs, almost unsure. That _was_ the purpose of them going to live with him, but to hear it said so freely felt unreal. Then again, the past two years felt like something out of an anime or manga; no sane person would believe anything they were told about the apocalypse if any of the dragons tried.

“But what of you Keiichi?” Kamui wants to move on from the topic of his living situation as fast as possible. It was becoming more uncomfortable every time someone brought it up. “Yuzuriha mentioned you wanted to transfer out of CLAMP Campus, why?”

The bubble blond laughs sheepishly. “Oh, I was just thinking about it,” He responds causally. “I was told by some advisors that I have a good shot at getting into Keio University so…”

Arashi and Kamui’s eyes widen.

“Really? That’s amazing,” The former priestess of Ise compliments.

Kamui chuckles a bit. “No wonder you’re thinking about transferring. I would too if I was told I could get into Keio.”

“Really hope you have the costs to cover it though,” Yuzuriha points out teasingly.

Keiichi grins. “Trust me, I wouldn’t even consider it if I didn’t get a scholarship,” But then he turns back to face Kamui and Arashi.

“What about you guys? Are you both going to come back to school anytime soon?”

Yuzuriha pales at the question she was dreading to come up.

But Kamui and Arashi take a quick glance at each other before answering.

“No. Probably not,” Kamui said plainly.

Keiichi gives them a befuddled look, of which Arashi decides to step in. She could be blunt just like her roommate, but she knew when it was appropriate and when it wasn’t. Giving a straight-forward answer like that was worrying, especially in a society where academics proved to be highly important.

“We’re still deciding,” She says smoothly. “Rehabilitation is still taking its course; it’ll be some time before school becomes a priority again.”

Keiichi slowly nods. “I see, health is important,” He agrees. It’s an answer they weren’t expecting. Most people would brush off their situation like it was nothing and ramble about how an education was the most important thing in the world. But then again, Keiichi is not like most people.

“Well then, we’ll be waiting for you until then!” He pulls Yuzuriha near him and they both flash a smile.

//…\\\

Yuzuriha pulls them down the street.

“Come on, this way!”

Kamui and Arashi look back towards Keiichi, who’s just a little behind them. He just gives a light-hearted laugh and smile as Yuzuriha drags them with her through the city.

Eventually, after many twists and turns, the girl finally stops.

“Here we are!”

They all look up at the brand new florist shop that’s just opened. The sign read _Miracles of Gaia._

“Kusanagi just opened it,” Yuzuriha explains brightly. “Isn’t it nice?”

Kamui and Arashi both stare and nod. They really didn’t know what to say. Neither of them were close to the former angel, but they knew he was someone Yuzuriha liked a lot. And from the few times they did meet him, he seemed to be possibly the only reasonably good member of the Dragons of Earth. Made them wonder how he got put on their side instead of the Dragons of Heaven…

Yuzuriha mentioned earlier when they were finishing their meals at the café, that Kusanagi had decided to retire from the Japanese Special Defense Force. Apparently, he had a bit of a dream to open up a flower shop. Also the clean-up demand was tiring him out, but that wasn’t the point here. He also seemed to be rather smart, as its place was located in the inner city. A strategic decision that would get him a lot of customers and keep him in business, hopefully.

Yuzuriha walks in first, the bell atop the door giving a chime to signal their arrival, and the inside there’s quite a surprise waiting for them.

It was not just Kusanagi Shiyuu, but also Seiichirou Aoki. Both men seemed to be in a pleasant conversation, with Kusanagi behind the counter and Aoki standing in front of it. The wind master also held a beautiful bouquet in his hands.

“Yahoo! Hello, everyone!” Yuzuriha skipped over cheerfully. Both men turned over to greet her with a smile. But then Aoki peered slightly behind her to spot two of his former teammates awkwardly shifting in place. For a moment there seems to be an odd moment of silence, as Yuzuriha and Keiichi step out of view to allow Aoki, Kamui and Arashi to see each other fully.

“Ah, you two…” Aoki clearly wasn’t expecting to see them. Neither teen expected to see him here either. They both expected Yuzuriha to drag them to visit him later or something, but not now. And upon throwing glances at her, it seems she anticipated he would be here. Kusanagi chuckles a bit under his breath as Keiichi gives a thumbs up.

Arashi eyes her former leader, annoyed that he was just standing there in surprise. She stepped up and bowed respectfully. “Aoki-san, it’s wonderful to see you again.” She speaks calmly and lowly.

Kamui realizes his errors and stands up straight. “Y-yeah. How have you been? How is everything?”

Aoki’s startled expression quickly forms into a caring smile that both dragons were familiar seeing.

“Fine, everything is well. It’s certainly been a long time since I’ve seen you both. How have you been doing?”

Both teens give a sigh of relief, realizing that the team Dad of the Dragons of Heaven held no anger for them just skipping out of the city unannounced for months-almost a year, really.

Yuzuriha and Keiichi strike up a conversation with Kusanagi behind them, and thus, Kamui, Arashi and Aoki catch each other up to speed. They mostly reiterate information and events they told Yuzuriha in their meeting with her. Aoki tells them about his wife and daughter, how his daughter just started CLAMP Campus’s middle school division and how excited she is. No one mentions Karen or Sorata in this conversation.

Eventually Aoki leans over and asks, “How is Subaru-san really? Is he faring well with his new job?”

Arashi has to blink a few times, not realizing that the word about Subaru becoming the Sakurazukamori was already so widespread. Kamui nods, a soft, short, sweet smile upon his face recalling the former Sumeragi Head and how he lived his life now.

“He’s…doing well actually. He takes his job very seriously.”

Aoki returns his smile. “I’d imagine. It’s one of the few things the person most important to him left him to do,”

“The balance of Japan is necessary,” Arashi supplies and then looks down sullenly. “But it does take a toll on him,” She remembers some of the nights where Subaru just lets himself breakdown. It’s rare, probably even rarer for them to see the man crumple up on the living room floor, but it’s one of events that reminds them both that Subaru was just as destroyed, if not more so, than they were.

Kamui shakes his head in agreement but then turns his attention fully to Aoki. “And what of you? And…” The words fall short of his lips but it’s evident who he’s talking about. Aoki stares in confusion for a moment before letting his sigh go through his lips.

“It’s been…hard of course. I miss him dearly. Yuka still asks about Daisuke all the time,”

Both teens look at him blankly and Aoki continues, “I’ve told her he’s gone but it hasn’t sunken in yet. She was really close to him.”

“In her mind, he’s still around,” Arashi whispers quietly.

Aoki nods. “Even after we visited his grave…she asks when he’s coming to visit. I don’t know if it ever will ‘sink’ in but I don’t look forward to the day it does,”

Kamui puts a hand on his shoulder. “It’ll be alright, she’s young and she’s proven to be strong just like her father.” He remembers all the times Aoki has been there for them, acting as a support while also getting over grief himself. How the editor would always put on a reassuring smile despite everything going wrong around them.

Arashi had to silently admit it was wrong of them to just walk out on the relationships they had with the other dragons. It was wrong to throw away the support they’ve always had and needed.

Aoki takes a moment to let the comment sink in and he gleams. “Thank you, both of you.”

He pulls them both close and the two teens graciously accept the embrace. It’s oddly familiar and calming.

“And thank you, Seiichirou.” Kamui murmurs in his chest.

“Truly, for everything.” Arashi says serenely.

In the background, Kusanagi, Yuzuriha and Keiichi watch the scene out of the corners of their eyes and grin.

//...\\\

“Your shop is quite lovely, Kusanagi-san.” Arashi compliments as she steps around the store. They’re many flowers, such as roses, carnations, forget-me-nots, amaryllis…the list can carry on.

There’s boisterous laughter from behind her. “Why thank you! I work very hard to upkeep everything,”

She pulls out her wallet after spotting something she likes, “Hmm, this should be enough…”

Yuzuriha jumps over to Aoki. “Hey, these are for Shimako-san, right?” She pokes the bouquet in his hand curiously.

“Aha, yes!” The brunette editor pulls up the flowers in his hands. “Our anniversary is today! And Shimako always loved tulips so I thought it’d be a good idea to surprise her.”

The group of teens peer inside the newspaper wrappings to indeed see the flowers Aoki was referencing, plus some classic red roses.

“Ooo, are you doing anything special?” Keiichi asks curiously.

Aoki nods. “Well, Yuka is going to a friend’s house for the night so we have the entire place to ourselves…”

Kusanagi whistles causing the teens to blush and for Aoki to playfully whack him on the arm.

“Stop that, you.” He teases and all of them start laughing.

In the midst of the humor, Arashi steps back over to the spot where she was before, surrounded by numerous flowers.

“Say, Kusanagi-san, may I have this bunch?” She points to a shelf in front of her. Kusanagi ceases his rambunctiousness and looks over from where he is at the desk to see what she’s pointing at. He walks over and eyes the shelf curiously.

“You want all this? You sure?”

Arashi shakes her head embarrassed. “Ah, no. Just this, this, and this,”

Kusanagi rubs his chin. “Alright, I see.” He does some mental calculations about the price. “Alright then, nothing too costly, you should be good to go.” He walks into the backroom of the store and Kamui takes this opportunity to poke her with his elbow.

“What’s all this about it? Don’t you think the tree would get a little jealous bringing these foreign flowers home?” He jokes and Arashi rolls her eyes.

“Please, if it got jealous it would’ve gotten rid of the camellias in the garden a long time ago,”

“True,” Kamui surmises. “But still, why buy all this?”

Arashi contemplates her answer. “I thought it’d be nice,” She responds simply. “It’ll brighten up the house, won’t it?”

Kamui scoffs. The house was bright enough as it. Surprisingly, the interior of the Sakurazuka Manor was actually nicely colored; pastel yellow walls lined the main living spaces of the house, particularly prominent in the living room.

“And besides, it’ll be a nice gift for Subaru,” Arashi says off-handedly.

“Next you’ll say it’s about ‘dragons supporting dragons,’” Kamui scoffs and Arashi side-eyes him.

“I mean, it is!” Yuzuriha interjects and both older teens jump back in shock, not realizing she had been eavesdropping in on their conversation. They both throw a quick glance over to Keiichi and Aoki, seeing the two of them still having a polite conversation about something or another.

“Well, you are supporting Kusanagi’s business by buying from him,” Yuzuriha points out and Arashi has to stifle a chuckle.

“You make a good point,”

Kusanagi steps out of the backroom, a bouquet in his hand with all the flowers Arashi requested. She steps up to the counter and the two trade their respective commerce. She curtsies graciously and Kusanagi merely chuckles.

//…\\\

“Ah, it’s running rather late.” Aoki says aloud while looking at his wrist watch. “I should be getting home, that dinner won’t cook itself, you know.”

Keiichi grins. “Why, of course!” He bows. “It was nice seeing you again, Aoki-san!”

“Pleasure as always, Keiichi-kun,”

Kamui and Arashi step up to the man, the father figure of the Dragons of Heaven.

“It was wonderful seeing you two again,” Aoki says as he adjusts his jacket and shifts the bouquet to his other arm. “Call sometime, won’t you?”

“Of course,” They both respond in unison and with that, Aoki took off down the street to catch the nearest bus.

The four teens wave their ‘goodbye’s’ to Kusanagi as they leave the shop and walk down the street making idle chatter. Then Kamui and Arashi reached their train station.

“Ah, well I guess we have to part ways here,” Yuzuriha laments and Keichii pats her back.

“Are you guys heading back to the mansion?” Kamui inquires and the tall blond boy nods.

“Yep, and I take it you guys are going straight home?”

Arashi shrugs. “Perhaps. We didn’t plan what was for dinner, so maybe we’ll make a stop to pick up something.” She still has some remaining money left from the stash Subaru gave her. And she was certain Kamui had more left, seeing as how he didn’t spend as much as her.

Kamui grumbles something about wanting sushi and Keiichi laughs. Then, out of the blue, Yuzuriha pulls them all close to her.

“Guys, today was really fun,” She starts as she clutches to Kamui’s arm. “I don’t think I’ve had this much fun in such a long time,”

“Yuzuriha…” Arashi whispers and Kamui looks away guiltily.

Then the short girl raises her head up high and with the sun shining down on her, it’s almost as if she sparkles in the light. “Let’s meet up again! All of us!” And then she angrily jabs her fingers into Kamui and Arashi’s chest.

“And call us for goodness’s sakes! You guys have phones; use ‘em! Don’t get us all worried over here wondering where you are!”

Keiichi reigns her in awkwardly. “Yuzuriha-chan, I think they get it,” He says as he notices how red their faces looked from being berated by their friend in public. A few passerby’s were staring. Kamui shot them all one of his signature glares and they turned away, back to minding their own business.

Arashi holds the bouquet close to her face. “W-we’ll make sure to do that; we’re sorry for troubling you,”

Yuzuriha sighs and plants her hands on her hips. “Mou, no need to get so formal. I get it; but seriously, you guys can’t be locked up in that house forever you know,”

“W-we know,” Kamui stammers. “But…”

“But what? You have friends,” Yuzuriha holds Kamui’s hands together. “I’d like to think I have friends too.”

“Same here,” Keiichi agreed. “You can’t just expect us to not get worried when you go off radar.” He then looks around to the ever-populous and ever-advancing city of Tokyo. “Come outside, get some fresh air. And plan meetups once and awhile, okay? We’re always free on the weekends.”

Both Kamui and Arashi glance at each other for a brief moment before turning back to Yuzuriha’s puffed up face and Keiichi’s genuine joyful expression.

“Right! We’ll do that!”

//…\\\

He hasn’t been here in decades. When was the last time he stepped foot in this house? Takehito doesn’t know. All he does know is that this place hasn’t changed in the slightest. He has to admit that his memory isn’t the best in his old age, but he knows that this old beautiful house remains the same as it did all those years ago.

He was sitting across the table from the new Sakurazukamori, of whom was calmly drinking tea while dressed in a black turtleneck and blue slacks. Takehito has to admit he has mixed feelings on this man. On one hand, he feels if it were different circumstances, he would actually genuinely like Subaru Sakurazuka. On the other, he couldn’t ignore the troubles this man brought to the government as of current.

It was causing an internal debate amongst some factions on whether this new Sakurazukamori was suitable for the position. Not because of lack of expertise, because no, Subaru did his job fantastically well for someone who had no prior experience in assassination. He wasn’t as good as Sakurazuka-san but he got the job done routinely well. The problem lay with Subaru’s former family, the Sumeragi Clan. The 12th head of the Sumeragi Clan was causing a stir about her ‘missing’ grandson, even though many people tried to tell her that he was dead. After all, as far as Takehito understood, Subaru was involved in the Final Day just like Sakurazuka-san, which meant his chances of survival were going to be low. The 12th Head of the Sumeragi Clan should have just accepted his disappearance/death and moved on with finding a new head of the clan.

“So,” Subaru began after putting down his cup of plum tea, “You're saying it would be best to out myself to the Sumeragi Clan?”

Takehito slowly nodded. “Yes, many of us in the cabinet have agreed that would be the best decision. Hiding your existence is becoming too much of a hassle to deal with. Your family’s supporters in the government are really persistent.”

He sees Subaru’s face wince at the term ‘family’.

“I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience, Subaru-chama.”

Admittedly, Takehito didn’t know what to actually call the new Sakuraukamori. Despite taking the surname, Subaru adamantly refused to be called ‘Sakurazuka’. He gave the reason for it being out of respect for his predecessor, whom Takehito referred to still as Sakurazuka-san.

Even with knowing the family for years, Takehito never got as close to Seishirou as he did with his mother, Setsuka. Seishirou, for one, always made them meet up in some fancy restaurant in the city rather than the family home like Setsuka welcomed him into. In fact, Takehito could recall he’d never entered the house since Seishirou became head of his clan. Though being close to Setsuka had its drawbacks; the woman could go on for _hours_ about mindless things that he cared little for. But he knew better than to cut her off and end the conversation on his terms; Setsuka was known for being…out of her mind. Made him question how she was deemed stable for being the Sakurazukamori in the first place.

Well, he knew how the succession rites were done; being married to a miko had its perks. If they weren’t done the way it was, then Subaru, the 13th Head of the Sumeragi Clan would’ve never ended up as the Sakurazukamori. Though, given both family’s rivalry, something like this was bound to happen, he supposed. If it wasn’t now, then some Sumeragi later down the line would’ve popped up and killed the Sakurazukamori and ended up inheriting the position.

 _"And it just so happened that person ended up being Subaru-chama,"_ Takehito thought to himself.

Even with that notion, Takehito understood some deeper connection ran between Subaru and Seishirou’s relationship. He suspected it was romantic, given the way Subaru carried himself by taking the Sakurazuka name and by the pentagrams that were shown freely on the back of his hands. He didn’t know what the pentagrams meant, but he knew they were the Sakurazukamori’s symbol. He would ask his wife about it later.

Of course, he would never question Subaru about it. That would be too invasive. And it was all too clear to him that Subaru was still shattered over his predecessor’s death. Anyone could see it in his eyes-mismatched, beautiful and yet full of sorrow. It reminded Takehito of his own mother after his father had passed on.

“I admit,” Subaru says softly, “That I don’t have a clue as to what the Sumeragi would do to me once they find out…”

“Certainly you must have an idea,” Takehito responds and with a shaking hand, takes hold of the cup of tea on his side of the table. “You were the former head, were you not?”

“Under technicality, I still am,” Subaru mutters bitterly.

“Surely you could fight them off,” Takehito presses. “I’ve heard there is no one more powerful than you,” Because there was no way that Seishirou would leave someone incompetent to fulfill his position. Pushing Subaru’s demeanor aside, Takehito realized that Subaru _was_ the most suitable person for the position given Seishirou’s death. He’d heard no word of any other powerful Sakurazuka members in recent years.

Subaru looks down at his tea warily. “I would prefer not to,”

They both lapsed into silence, wondering what they should do.

“Perhaps, us in the government can arrange something? A formal meeting?” Takehito suggests but Subaru shakes his head.

“That’ll never work. Having them even _see_ me is such a risk,”

“But they must, otherwise they’ll never believe the circumstances.”

Subaru shifts his eyes to looking around the room. Eventually they land something sitting idly by on a shelf.

“Maybe they won’t have to…” Subaru leans over the table slightly. “I could call,”

Takehito’s eyes widen. “Wouldn’t they be able to trace you from that?”

Subaru contemplates, “If I play my cards right, they won’t be able too. But I’ll need to be very careful. And outside the city with a disposable phone,”

Takehito furrows his old brows and rubs his chin. “I see, but I still think you should arrange a meeting with them personally. They’d want to see you,” He says cautiously.

“They’ll want to kill me,” Subaru murmurs. “Disownment is one thing but being a disgrace that’s fallen into enemy lines is another,”

“Subaru-chama,” Takehito starts, “I’m sure they understand the balance of Japan better than anyone. Shouldn’t they understand your reasoning and position?”

The young man across from him sways his head unsurely.

“What your saying is true, but you see…the Sumeragi and the Sakurazukamori have history.”

“I’m sure they do-”

Subaru raises his hand to pause him. “No, not like that. Recent history. I’m not sure what Seishirou has told you but…we knew each other, for a very long time.”

Takehito nods even though he knew nothing of Subaru’s history with the former Sakurazukamori. He was very interested in hearing it. Seishirou never delved into personal matters like Setsuka did. On one hand it was a blessing because it kept their meetings short, but on the other it left Takehito wondering about him and his private life. It always struck him as odd that Seishirou stopped having meetings in the Main house.

Subaru takes a deep breath and brings one of his hands close to his mouth, almost as if he’s about to kiss it.

“I…had a twin. She isn’t around anymore. You can piece that together.”

Ah, now his memory comes back to him. Seishirou did kill a Sumeragi a few years ago. Takehito wonders how he forgot that.

_“So Subaru-chama knew Sakurazuka-san all the way back then…”_

“But even still…me and Seishirou…” Subaru looks momentarily wistful before shaking his head. “Needless to say, that will cause strife amongst the Sumeragi clan, knowing I’ve attained this position.”

Takehito nods. “I see, I see,” He wonders then if the two men really were romantically involved as he previously thought. Subaru could have killed him out of revenge without knowing he would inherit the other man’s position. And someone from the Sumeragi Clan would have pride but also be intelligent, so Subaru taking the Sakurazuka surname would to lay low would be a very wise move.

Or maybe it was both. Takehito’s seen his fair share of crazies from Sakurazuka family and many in the spiritual world. He remembers one his wife’s aunts during Golden Week and how she streaked across their property half-clothes completely out of her mind. He got many complaints from his neighbors about that one. There was also that fist-fight that broke out during Christmas…and that other fist-fight that occurred during New Year’s…and the fight that started over a wishbone on Coming of Age Day…his wife’s family really needed to calm down. That aside…

“Well then, I suppose our faction can hold out a bit longer until you make a right course of action,” Takehito says with his arms crossed.

Subaru’s eyes raise slightly. “Are you saying you disagree with my idea about the phone call?”

Takehito sighed. “It’s not that. Err…it kind of is actually,”

He sees the other man gape at him.

“Listen Subaru-chama, I think I understand how your grandmother must feel. She wants to see you again. She wants to see if you’re okay.” Takehito’s old and he’s getting soft saying things like this to an assassin. But he does relate to Lady Sumeragi in a way. “If I knew my grandson was alive out there somewhere, then I’d want to see him too,”

Subaru seems a bit taken back by his choice of words.

“Takehito-san…”

“She may dislike you, dislike what you’re doing. But I don’t think she could ever hate you,” Takehito says comfortingly.

There’s a lapse in silence. And after a few long moments, Subaru takes a sip of his tea and then murmurs, “Alright. I’ll think about it,”

//…\\\

The rest of their meeting went smoothly. Discussing upcoming jobs and events in politics. Subaru asked him some questions about the Sakurazuka family and Takehito had to painfully admit he didn’t know as much as he would’ve liked.

“I’ll be honest. I would’ve thought you knew more about the Sakurazuka family than me,” Takehito says.

Subaru looks down sullenly. “There’s a lot of things I didn’t know about Seishirou…”

“Even though you two were…” Takehito has to stop himself from saying ‘involved’ because that would be too personal. Subaru looks at him curiously before resigning himself to a soft smile.

Then there’s a click.

Takehito looks around and Subaru silently curses. He thought he’d time this out perfectly! Kamui and Arashi had arrived earlier than expected. He stares at the digital clock atop the television that read a pristine 4:55 PM. He assumed they’d be home around 5:30 at least, given the traffic from inside the city.

“Um, Subaru-chama is that…” Takehito stares at the living room entrance curiously. There’s no way an intruder entered the Sakurazukamori’s home. But yet…

“Tadaima!” Came a young man’s voice from the entrance way.

Takehito turns his attention to Subaru questioningly. He _never_ mentioned anyone else living with him. Subaru doesn’t even get a chance to explain because within seconds, Kamui and Arashi step into view. The two teens freeze up immediately upon seeing a stranger in their home.

Takehito’s brown eyes gaze at them up and down. Two teens, clearly and the resemblance between them and Subaru was uncanny, especially the boy. In fact, the boy also reminded him of Seishirou with his wavy hair and intense eyes. The girl gave him some rather…unsavory flashbacks to Setsuka with how elegant she looked with the flowers in her hands.

He didn’t know how these two were related to Subaru, but it was evident they were…and maybe to Seishirou as well. He wouldn’t be surprised if the former Sakurazukamori kept them a secret…in the house. Ah! Now all the pieces fit together…why the meetings in the house had stopped once Seishirou had taken his position. Was he hiding this secret family? The two teens looked rather young and while he knew Subaru was young as well, Takehito supposed with the right gap it could work out...

With the realization dawning on him, he turned back to Subaru, a short chuckle on his lips.

“I didn’t realize you and Sakurazuka-san were raising children together,”

Kamui looks like he wants to shoot himself in the foot while Arashi covers her blush with the bouquet.

Subaru, in a rare moment of brilliance or just loss of sanity, decides not to correct him. He simply nods and gestures towards the old man.

“Kamui, Arashi, this is Takehito-san of the Counter Intelligence Unit,” He introduces and both teens see the flaring glimmer of anger in his eyes. Takehito sees it too, and recalls his mother giving him the same look when he was younger and got into trouble. It read: “If your father wasn’t six feet under then he would beat your ass.”

 _“What scary parents Subaru-chama and Sakurazuka-san must have been,”_ Takehito muses playfully to himself. It was obvious to him that there was a reason he wasn’t told of them and as to why both teens seemed to have been out shopping. Kamui holds a bag of take-out and Arashi has her bouquet filled with pink carnations, hydrangea’s and kingprotea’s.

Both teens bow politely.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Takehito-san,” Arashi says gracefully. Kamui doesn’t say anything, his teeth still gritting at being thought of as Subaru and Seishirou’s _child._ For Christ’s sake, they didn’t even look anything alike! Not to mention their age gap was too close for something like that to ever work out. He wondered if this old man was seeing right.

Subaru glances at Kamui’s bag and uses it as a way to get them out of his business.

“Is that dinner, Kamui? Why don’t you go set it in the kitchen? And Arashi, put those flowers in a vase. There should be some in the storage closest down the hall,” He orders.

Arashi nods slowly and then frowns at still shell-shocked Kamui. “Of course,” She responds in both of their stead, and then in a moment of wickedness adds, “…Haha-ue.”

Kamui gapes at her and looks like he wants to retort, but Arashi wisely drags him off down the hall. Takehito looks back at Subaru mildly shocked, while the other man merely held an eerily too calm smile on his face.

Then after a moment of processing everything that just happened, Takehito comments, “It must be difficult being a single-parent.”

“Indeed.”

“If only their father were here…”

“Yes. He would be proud,”

//…\\\

(In Ueno Park, the Sakura Tree is telling Seishirou’s spirit to keep his rampant mouth shut because the other spirits are starting to file complaints, and Hokuto laughs in the background.)

It’s 1 AM. Subaru stood with a disposable brick phone in hand by Ueno Park.

He decided against calling from outside the city, realizing it would be easier to track him down from there than here, near the tree. It was late and he wanted to go home. He hadn’t even done a job today. But regardless, he needed help.

“ _You rang?”_ Came the Sakura Tree’s voice through his ears.

“I need you to conceal me while I make this call,”

The tree’s silvery voice scoffed. _“I think you’re powerful enough to do that yourself,”_

Subaru glared in the tree’s direction from where he was outside the park.

“You know what I mean-”

 _“Relax, won’t you?”_ The tree cut in. _“You standing there is enough. They’ll never be able to trace you.”_

Subaru sighed a breath of relief.

 _“But it’d be even better if you did your job,”_ The tree added.

“You’re just being greedy,”

Whimsical laughter filled his ears. “ _Maybe so, but if you enacted your magic, it would make it easier to repel anything the Sumeragi may use.”_

 _‘Dark vs. Light,’_ Subaru thought to himself. But he didn’t quite use dark onmyojitsu to its fullest extent and he was still a Sumeragi in blood. In fact, if he used anything, he was sure it would increase his chances of being found. But he wasn’t going to bother the tree with that jargon. Instead he dialed the Main House’s number and looked around, ensuring there was no one else in the area.

It may be late at night but people still roamed the streets of Tokyo, particularly the vigilante and homeless. But the tree's imposing area sent many people away from this park at this time, as if it were a warning. But still, humans were humans and certain foolish ones ignored it and strolled by anyways, unaware their lives were on the line.

The phone finally picked up.

“Hello,” His voice was oddly calm as he spoke.

There was a stammer on the end, and angered huff for being unable to greet first and then a gasp.

“Sumeragi-sama!” A young woman’s voice came through. Subaru recognized her as Minako, one of the family’s attendants. Last time he saw her, she was so young, so he was a bit surprised that she was working the night shift.

“Good night. May I speak with grandmother?”

“O-of course,” She stuttered and then all Subaru heard was clutter and shouting in the background. Rather undignified for the Sumeragi, he mused to himself.

In a few moments, a new voice spoke.

“Subaru-san…is it…is it really you?” His grandmother’s voice trembled through the line.

Subaru had to hold down his laugh. She damn well knew it was him. There were probably people in the background trying to track this call as he spoke. Not like it would do them any good.

“Yes, it is, Obaa-san.”

“Subaru-san, we were so worried. Where are you-”

“I’m fine, Obaa-san.” There was no room for discussion. An _actual_ discussion. Because it would just be his grandmother berating him for forgetting his duties, upholding the family’s values for Japan and attempting to convince him that what he was doing was wrong. He didn’t need to stay here longer than he had to. He wanted to get home; he was certain that Kamui and Arashi had already gone to bed since he left them at 11:00.

“I’m perfectly fine where I am, so you need to stop looking for me. You’re causing too much political unrest,”

“Subaru-san what are you saying?”

“It’s getting in the way of my job,” He hinted at.

“Wha-? The Final Day is over!”

He had to suppress a tremor in his throat. “That’s not what I’m talking about-”

“You have responsibilities as Clan Head to uphold. No more playing in Tokyo. You must return to Kyoto at once-”

“Obaa-san,” He cut in. His voice was low and he internally groaned at the time on his wristwatch. It was nearing 2 already. “I’m not returning to Kyoto. I can no longer uphold the title of being the 13th Sumeragi Clan, so please give the position to someone else.” He stated plainly.

There was a brief moment of silence. All the noise in the background of the call ceased.

“Are you being set up? Who’s doing this to you Subaru-”

Hmph. So she still had the idea that he was still the innocent boy from all those years ago. It made him want to laugh aloud.

“No one. I simply have a new position to uphold. You _must_ understand that.” He took a deep breath in the cold winter air. “It was given to me by a very important person.”

His grandmother attempted to speak again but he didn’t need to hear her platitudes.

“The spiritual welfare of Japan hangs in the balance. That being said, farewell Obaa-san.”

(“ _This will be the final time we speak,”_ )

“Subaru-!”

He pulled the phone a part from his ears, the faint calls of his name growing more distant.

“And if you find out the things I’ve done, you’ll never want me back as Clan Head.”

He hung up.

//…\\\

He entered the house quietly. It was just past 3 and later than he’d hoped. He walked into the hallway and past Arashi and Kamui’s rooms; both were shut and no other lights were on in the house, signaling their sleep.

He went into the main bedroom and its private bathroom. After washing up, he slipped into one of Seishirou’s old white button-ups and curled up on the bed. He didn’t even bother going under the covers; he knocked out instantly.

//…\\\

(That night, he dreamt of 1990 under the pale moonlight. And when he awoke the next morning, his face was tear-stricken.)

_The soft chime of the bell makes him alert. This early already? But no, it wasn’t Yuzuriha at the door like he was expecting._

_“Ah, Seiichirou-san! Welcome!” Kusanagi greeted kindly to his newfound friend._

_The tall, brunette smiles kindly and makes a quick stride over to the small beige desk in the corner of the shop. “Good Kusanagi-san, how is everything?” Aoki inquires._

_“Fantastic! I had quite a few customers this morning!” Kusanagi then goes into a tirade about a couple of business men trying to get a quick gift for their wives on their anniversary._

_Aoki chuckles. “I hate to say it, but that’s why I’m here as well,”_

_“Oho? Really?”_

_Aoki nods. “Today’s my anniversary and I wanted something special for my wife,” He then takes a glance around. “I see you have tulips, my wife loves them.”_

_Kusanagi gleams. “Why of course! Let me wrap some up for you!” He goes into the back section of the store to get some stock. Taking from the display isn’t wise after all. In minutes, he comes back with a number of tulips wrapped in newspaper and places them on the desk._

_Aoki peers at them curiously and notices another type of flower he didn’t ask for mixed between the tulips. Before he could ask, Kusanagi steps behind the desk and rings him up._

_“I threw some roses in on the house! Nothing better for setting a romantic mood, right?”_

_“Aha, you’re very much right. Thank you Kusanagi-san.” Aoki replies as he hands over the money._

_“No problem, I’m sure Karen-san will love them,”_

_There’s a freeze._

_Kusanagi doesn’t notice and continues talking._

_“It’s funny really. When you showed up earlier I thought it was Yuzuriha-chan! She told me she was bringing over some friends today and-”_

_“Kusanagi-san.”_

_“Hm?”_

_“Karen…Karen-san isn’t my wife.” Aoki says slowly._

_Kusanagi pauses and rubs his chin. “She isn’t? But you always talk about her…” He trails off unsurely. Aoki takes a deep breath. Kusanagi was right, in all their private conversations, Karen had come up frequently. And thinking back, did Aoki still refer to her in present tense? He must have if Kusanagi thought she was still alive. Yuzuriha rarely talked about the Final Day, never brought up Sorata or Karen, and very clearly wanted to move on._

_It wasn’t…It wasn’t surprising Kusanagi didn’t know. He only knew the Dragons of Heaven near the end, long after Karen and Sorata had perished._

_“My apologies…” Aoki has to take his glasses off and rub his eyes. “Karen-san was…A Dragon of Heaven. I supposed you could say we were close,”_

_Kusanagi nods slowly and then grabs something from a small box on his desk._

_Before Aoki realizes it, he has a napkin pressed to his face, wiping away tears that were falling freely from his eyes._

_“Yeah, close enough that you still talk about her as if she was still alive,”_

_“Kusanagi-san-“_

_But the former military man holds a hand up. “Let me talk first,”_

_Aoki nods as he takes over the tissue and wipes his eyes._

_“Listen, I’ll be honest and tell ya’ that I always got pretty confused when you were talking about her and your wife and just assumed they were the same. Sorry ‘bout that,”_

_“Yes, but-”_

_“But, if you’re talking about someone that much, to the point where someone can get confused about it like that, then something’s wrong.”_

_Aoki looks to the floor._

_“Well, am I right?” Kusanagi questions curiously._

_There’s a moment of silence. There’s rustling of flowers and newspaper as Kusanagi shifts to rest his head on his hands._

_“Yeah, you’re right.” Aoki replies._

_Kusanagi just sighs and leans down a bit. “Alright, lemme hear it.”_

_“Huh?”_

_“Let’s talk about it. I think I’m due for explanation, yeah?”_

_It’s been this long already. Almost two years. Aoki would have liked to think of Kusanagi as a good friend by now, and well, sharing this type of information would certainly be proof of that. And he hasn’t talked about this with anyone yet. No one really knew about Karen and how he felt for her. And there always was that saying that it’s better to talk about your problem in order to get them off your chest, right?_

_So he does. He tells Kusanagi everything. From who Karen was to how he loved her, and all the way to the end with her death just before the Final Day._

_The flames…_

_So many burned around her as her short, silky, pink hair flowed in the wisps of the weak wind he couldn’t stop._

_She took down the water master and the girl who controlled the Beast of the Dragons of Earth._

_“Ah, Kigai and Yatouji-kun,” Kusanagi mused. “I knew they were offed but I didn’t know by who. That lady of yours is quite the kicker,”_

_“Aha, thanks,” Aoki takes the compliment in stride but then freezes. His tears have long stopped through his talk but something in the other man’s words makes his eyes water just slightly. “Lady of-hold on, Kusanagi-san. I’m still a married man!” He insists but Kusanagi just laughs._

_“I know, I know, sorry for teasing.” He apologizes while trying to stifle a giggle. Aoki feels like a child just pouting at him._

_“But what of your wife?” Kusanagi suddenly questions. “How do you feel about her still?”_

_The wind master’s eyes fall to the flowers on the desk, still neatly wrapped in the crinkled newspaper._

_“I…”_

_Shimako…_

_Shimako Aoki…_

_One of the two people he did everything for in the Final Day, to ensure their safety and their lives for the future. He…_

_He still did love her, didn’t he?_

_It was a feeling that had faded, eroded ever so slightly because of time spent with a certain fire welding beauty but he still did love his wife. It wasn’t as much as before, but the feeling remained. And he couldn’t forget about his daughter, his little girl who could finally live without the destruction of the city at every turn in 1999. He could never forget and push aside Yuka as well._

_“I still love her. I love her deeply,” Aoki finally resolves and grasps the bouquet with one hand._

_“And that’s why I want to do all I can for her!”_

_Kusanagi pats him on the back. “That’s the spirit!”_

_And then the bell chimes._

She’s here.

She’s fucking here.

She’s outside his house.

There’s so many questions Subaru wants to ask right now.

How? How did she get here? How did she find him? He spots no bodyguards with her, just her in her wheelchair outside his front door. There _is_ a low black car down the dusty road however, which answers some of his questions just sparingly.

Immediately, he opens up his connection to the tree. _“How did she get here!? You said she couldn’t trace me!”_

 _“She couldn’t!”_ The Sakura Tree shoots back. _“But it appears some contact in the government might have given you away…”_

Subaru grits his teeth. He was going to have a long talk with Takehito-san later about some poor sod in Counter Intelligence failing their job.

He looks down at her from the porch. Her aged, saddened eyes mock him and the conversation from months before. Subaru sighs and resigns to his fate.

“Obaa-san,” He says curtly. “Allow me to help you inside,”

//…\\\

It’s early spring of 2001, but the March air is still chilly. It’s been two years. Two years since he’d last seen her. They both sit in the living room, under the kotatsu; Subaru having helped her out of her wheelchair and sat her across from him. He was surprised she allowed herself to be seated like this, but something in her must have known that he had no intention of hurting her.

He had warned the tree earlier about pulling some sneak attack on his grandmother and the tree just scoffed at him and said: _“Don’t think of me as being that idiotic, boy. I’ve been around longer than the Sumeragi.”_ So at least he knew the tree wouldn’t turn on him.

As for Kamui and Arashi…they were still asleep on this cold Tuesday morning. It was already 9 however, and he expected them to get up soon.

Subaru picked up his cup of lemon balm tea. “Obaa-san, to what do I owe the honor?”

Lady Sumeragi stayed quiet for a moment, peering at the surroundings first. The living room complimented the lights with its pale yellow walls and tatami mat flooring. The borders around the edges of the ceiling however were a rich brown and the window on the wall to her left allowed her to see the Sakura and camellia in bloom while also being covered in the final bits of snow.

This homey environment was _not_ the type of place she was expecting her grandson to be staying in.

“Subaru-san…” She finally turns her gaze back to him and makes notice of his face. “Your eyes…”

Subaru blinks for a moment before lightly touching the cheek below his honey-colored eye. It’s at this point she realizes that he’s no longer wearing his gloves and red pentagram marks glow. Lady Sumeragi is about to make a retort when he speaks.

“Yes, I lost one in the Final Day.” He takes a sip of his tea before putting the cup back down. “And I’ve gotten it replaced.”

 _“I’m surprised she wasn’t informed,”_ The tree chimes in mentally.

 _“Not all information I relayed back to the clan,”_ Subaru explains. _“Though I’m sure she saw that I entered the hospital at some point.”_

 _“And you somehow wiped the reasoning for being there totally clean? I’m impressed.”_ The tree responds amused, as if they couldn’t believe the man had it in him to do so.

_“You’d be surprised at what Imonoyama-san could do,”_

“Whose…eye is it?” Lady Sumeragi asks slowly because she senses something from it. Power. That eye is no common replacement. It’s the eye of someone with great spiritual ability-

“Seishirou’s.” Subaru replies nonchalantly.

She gapes at him. “Sei-!? The Sakurazukamori’s?” And something hits her. The house. The location. The trees outside. Subaru’s forgoing of his sacred gloves. All she had been given was this address to come see her grandson. And piecing it all together with what Subaru had said last November…

She closes her eyes in understanding. “You’ve taken up his station.”

“Indeed.” Subaru reaches for his cup again as his grandmother speaks.

“…that man…why?” She finds herself asking aloud. The one who took away her energetic and lively granddaughter…and the one who turned her kind and ever-loving grandson into this dreary figure. It pains her old heart to think about, to reflect on the damage the Sakurazukamori had inflicted on their family for the past 11 years. Subaru had left them…for him? For their greatest rival and his sister’s killer? Nothing made sense to her-she didn’t want it to make sense. There was no rationale for her grandson’s behavior.

“It’s the natural order, Obaa-san.” Subaru answers calmly. “Natural succession rites for the Sakurazukamori.”

Lady Sumeragi looks at him in alarm, but Subaru carries on.

“It’s the price I have to pay for ending it all for him.”

There’s only a stunned silence. She’s grateful she hadn’t reached for her cup or otherwise it would have been dropped.

“You…you…!” She wants to shout, to yell, to refute and retort but it had all come together. “You killed…” It’s an odd revelation, seeing as she had just established Subaru was the new Sakurazukamori and thus, a murderer, but to think her grandson ended the life of the previous Sakurazukamori…

There was a swell of pride in her for knowing he did the act. But now it was sinking in as to _what it meant_ for him.

Subaru makes an affirmative noise and continues graciously sipping his tea as if it was nothing.

It was far too serene. This whole situation. Too calm, too dreadful, filled with sorrow. Subaru embodied it all and it terrified her.

She didn’t know this man.

She wants to ask ‘Who are you?’ but that would be foolish. Subaru has already established himself as the Sakurazukamori.

But there was still a chance…

“Subaru-san, would you still be willing?”

Subaru tilts his head to the side. “Willing? Willing to do what?”

“To come back home,” Lady Sumeragi states. “We’re...no _I’m_ willing to work something out with you. You are still the most capable person to hold the position of clan head.” She places her hands on her lap, as if preparing herself for what she’s about to say.

 _“And here I thought we’ve established you aren’t going to leave?”_ The tree remarks and Subaru has to muse his agreement.

“This could be a good thing,” She finally says and Subaru frowns, already having a good idea of what she’s about to propose.

“With you as the Sakuraukamori, we could use this opportunity to study their ways and arts and perhaps even…” _Free you from this position_. Those words fall off the end because she doesn’t get a chance to speak it.

Subaru shakes his head. “And then you’ll want to cease all activities of the Sakurazukamori, is that right?”

Lady Sumeragi has to nod to that, because it was the intention.

“I’m sorry then, Obaa-san. I cannot agree to your terms. It would not be optimal for us to work together under those conditions.”

“…what?”

Subaru stares at her dully. “You heard me. There’s a balance that has to be maintained, Obaa-san. I cannot just throw this position away just because you disagree with its contents.”

“Subaru-san, what are you even saying? The usage of dark onmyodo is something must be stopped-”

The tree laughs in his mind and Subaru lets it laugh for him, because he cannot do so in the moment without making him look rude or crazy.

“That’s a misconception, Obaa-san and you know that very well. Japan’s balance of light and dark must always be maintained or else the whole country, no, the whole world will run amok.” He cocks his head to the side, feigning confusion. After all, if Hokuto knew that the Sakurazukamori protected Japan from the shadows, then she must have heard it from someone. “Unless…that’s what you desire?” He inquires.

Lady Sumeragi leans back and places a hand on her chest in shock that he could accuse her of such a thing.

“Of course not!” She raises her voice. “But this…and you…this isn’t good for you, Subaru-san.”

“And worrying about me isn’t good _for you_ , Obaa-san.” Subaru takes a deep breath. “You’ve already gone through so much for Hokuto-chan and myself. You need to put those worries to a rest.” He talks to her like how he used to talk to his clients under the Sumeragi. He hates it. This is all meaningless; platitudes even, but they are things she needs to hear.

“You’re so old, Obaa-san. I wouldn’t like to see you wither away for my sake.” He then glances around the homey room, at the flowers that’s being used as a centerpiece on the kotatsu and the entrance way to the hallway of bedrooms. “I can live my own life, Obaa-san. It may not be something you agree with but it’s something that must be done.”

There’s a moment of silence and then a yawn.

Kamui is standing in the doorway, rubbing his eyes with one hand and scratching his stomach with the other, his shirt haven ridden up to do so. “Guh…mor…” He stops short when he finally registers there’s someone he doesn’t know in his home. “…nin’?”

Arashi steps up at his side, slow and quiet and a little more awake than her former leader. She peers into the living room to see why Kamui just stopped and her eyes widen in confusion at the sight of the elder Sumeragi. “Um…?” She turns her head adjacent to Subaru for answers.

Likewise, Lady Sumeragi looks back at her grandson for answers about these two random teens living in his abode. If he really was the Sakurazukamori, then why was he living with two teenagers…unless…

Her eyes flare up in unease at the thought they could possibly be easy kill.

“Ah, Kamui, Arashi, this is my grandmother.” Subaru introduces and at that, both teens bolt up fully awake and bow in respect.

“Obaa-san, this is Kamui and Arashi. They were my teammates during the final day. We’ve been living together for quite some time.”

Lady Sumeragi gasps at the sight of the boy. “You’re…the Kamui?”

Kamui fidgets awkwardly. “Yeah…only one left that is…”

Lady Sumeragi’s gaze then washes over the girl. “And you’re…?”

“That’s the hidden priestess of Ise,” Subaru cuts in, noticing how Arashi was a bit preoccupied with comforting Kamui about being reminded of his destiny.

Lady Sumeragi places a hand across her mouth to cover her slackened jaw. “You both are so…young…”

Kamui visibly blushes and nods while Arashi looks down embarrassed. Subaru flashes them both an all-knowing look and silently points to the kitchen.

“Good day, Lady Sumeragi,” Arashi faux curtsies, not realizing she wasn’t wearing a skirt.

“It’s an honor to meet you, but we’re um…going to get some breakfast,” Kamui says a little too fast for comfort. Then the two teens hurry into the kitchen, not without Subaru calling after them, “Do bring some more tea!”

Another moment of silence passes and it’s almost as if the tension from before had broken. Lady Sumeragi can only gape at her grandson, of whom was keeping more secrets than she had realized.

“Are there any more housemates I should know of?” The older woman inquires a bit heatedly but Subaru shakes his head. “No, only us three.”

Lady Sumeragi stares at him intensely before her expression softens a bit. “May I ask why?”

Subaru blinks before letting out a sigh, knowing this was going to be difficult to explain.

“All three of us lost people important to us during the Final Day. Eventually, they found me and with nowhere to go, I took them in.” He said, hoping she’d get the hint.

“I…see…” She responds and then takes a long drink of her tea, of which had cooled quite a bit.

“How noble,” She comments but there’s an underlying tone of dismay, possibly in relation to Subaru abandoning his duties to his biological family.

Subaru ignores it and continues the conversation as if it were a mere notice, “As you can see also, if I return, it also puts them into jeopardy.”

But Lady Sumeragi shakes her head. “Not at all. Having _the Kamui_ in the family would be quite the honor. The hidden priestess of Ise as well…she would make a great match for you…”

Subaru raises a brow at that.

 _“Oh, I don’t think your husband would appreciate that,”_ The tree comments amused. The Sakura could practically feel a certain spirit from within go livid.

 _“Neither would Arashi. Imagine Arisugawa-san’s spirit at the idea…”_ Subaru chides. And then as an afterthought, he adds: _“Also, do tell Seishirou he’s eighteen years behind on child support for two.”_

 _“He says: ‘The house is enough, what more do you need?’”_ The Sakura Tree is currently muffling a certain fashionista’s screaming in the background.

“I do believe you just said they were both quite young before,” Subaru points out. Not like age gaps mattered to him of all people, but still, it was an interesting turn around in reaction.

His grandmother coughs. “Yes, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t have time to grow and you certainly aren’t ready for marriage yet-”

“And I don’t think you’ve understood that _I’m not_ returning to the main house.”

//…\\\

Arashi stood idly by the percolator, waiting for the water to heat up. Kamui was by the stove, toasting up some bread for the both of them.

_“Psst.”_

Arashi looks up and then turns to Kamui, who’s in turn now staring at her.

“Did you say something?”

She shakes her head. “No. Did you?”

Kamui squints his eyebrows in confusion. “What? No. What are you talk-”

_“Pssssssttt.”_

It was louder this time. And it had a very distinct echo-like quality that they couldn’t place.

Kamui went on defense and had his hands up, ready to take a strike. “Who’s there?”

There was a soft giggle. It was light and smooth, and had masculine flavor to it. But with the airy, chorus-like quality to the tone, neither teen could truly say for certain it was a man speaking to them or not.

_“Good. It seems like you both can hear me. Honestly, I didn’t think this would even work-”_

The voice stops when it realizes the two of them had positioned themselves differently. Kamui having abandoned the toast of the stove to place himself in front of Arashi. His fists are up and his eyes darken, as if about to channel a psychic explosion _right then and there_ , without any concern for Subaru’s poor kitchen.

“Who are you?” Kamui demands in a harsh tone while Arashi nudges him and whispers, “Perhaps we should call Subaru. This is his specialty, after all.”

A despondent airy sigh from the disembodied voice.

_“You’re going to call the one that empowers me to take me out? Hilarious, really.”_

Kamui narrows his eyes in doubt. “Empower? What are you-?” Then he shakily puts his hands down, realizing the idiocy of it all. “You’re…the Sakura?”

Arashi covers her gasp as the voice’s giggles fill their ears.

_“Yes, that’s right. And I’m here to make a request.”_

Arashi worriedly glances towards the kitchen exit, wondering if she should really call for Subaru before deciding to screw it and come out from behind Kamui’s stance. She ignores his displeased glare before asking, “What is it?”

Talking to the Sakura Tree is like making a deal with the devil, or at least that’s how Arashi sees it. She’d never thought she’d be on the end of actually communicating with it. And she knows what they say about the devil, you can never refuse him without suffering the consequences. Well, that’s how Karen explained it to her.

“Yeah, and how are you talking to us?” Kamui pipes up, confused and still on edge.

Another sigh, more tired this time. _“It seems like Subaru is losing his footing in the conversation outside. I want one of you to go help him, preferably you, girl.”_

Arashi tilts her head to the side. “Eh? Why me?”

_“Because, my dear Subaru has no idea how to turn a serious situation humorous enough to make the other side back off. You seem to have enough wit to do that, seeing your stunt a few months ago.”_

It takes a few moments to realize what the tree is referring to and Arashi slowly nods.

“Hmph, I could do that too.” Kamui murmurs.

_“I think you need to focus on redoing your breakfast, boy.”_

And at that, Kamui had to refrain himself from shrieking when he noticed all his bread were burnt to all hell. Arashi shakes her head and goes back over to the percolator to pour the water in the kettle.

//…\\\

Arashi stands with her back to the wall and the kettle in her hand. She takes a small look inside the living room to see Subaru and Lady Sumeragi still in a heated discussion.

“Does she really want him to come back? Even after knowing what he does?” Arashi whispers.

 _“You’d be surprised,”_ The Sakura Tree responds. _“And I’d really hate to see all of you turned into prim and proper dolls of the Sumeragi.”_

Arashi can’t hide her shudder at the thought. She’d already gone through enough priestess training for one lifetime. That wasn’t even getting into the whole debacle of ‘not being pure’ anymore either.

_“You know she said Subaru and you would make a good match?”_

Arashi bites her lip. “She’d only take me in to marry me off to him…”

_“Upsetting, isn’t it?”_

//…\\\

_(Sorata…I could never…_

_Not to you…_

_Never to you…_

_After everything we’ve been through…after what you’ve done for me…_

_No…I cannot disgrace you like this.)_

//…\\\

_(The tree is pleased.)_

_(“It’s so nice to see old-standing customs fall into such disarray…”)_

//…\\\

“Obaa-san, you do realize the strife this would cause? The Sumeragi would never be respected if you take the Sakurazukamori in like this.”

“Quite the contrary. It would cause uproar at first, but imagine the results. It would put the main force of dark onmyodo out of commission-”

“And for the final time, that will throw the balance of Japan into havoc.”

“Perhaps, it is time for us to look into new methods and trainings for other alternatives of balance,”

“What you’re proposing will take years, even millennia to try and figure out-”

“Is this a bad time for the tea you requested?” Arashi’s voice cuts in from the doorway.

Both clan heads turn around to see the teen girl walk in with the kettle. Arashi still hasn’t changed out of her pajamas, the fluffy pants making soft swishing noises as she walks towards them.

“Not at all,” Subaru responds, trying to keep his voice low. Arashi kneels down beside him and begins to refill his cup. She pours into Lady Sumeragi’s cup, of which she notes still has quite a bit left in it. Subaru gives her a curt smile, “Thank you, Arashi.”

“Of course, Haha-ue.”

Lady Sumeragi looks around confused, wondering who exactly the girl was referring to. Because there was no woman here that could be identified as the girl’s mother…and then her eyes fall back to Subaru’s mildly curved upright lips. His mismatched eyes dance in wisdom and brilliance but also held an air of mischief, especially the one of the former Sakurazukamori.

“You’re her…” Lady Sumeragi shakes her head. No that wasn’t right, obviously. “You _allow_ yourself to be called _that_ …?” Where was her grandson’s dignity? Had it really fallen so low?

“My, Obaa-san, you really weren’t thinking that I should marry my own daughter, were you?” The sly smirk on Subaru’s face is not his own. It’s far too eerie with false innocence. Nothing about it was sincere like the Subaru she had raised and loved.

Arashi looked stunned. “Haha-ue…you’re not serious are you?” She says quietly but Lady Sumeragi can hear the fear in her voice.

“Hmph. As if I’ll allow such an act.” Subaru responds simply before taking a sip of his newly hot tea.

“Subaru-san, don’t be so unreasonable,” Lady Sumeragi presses but before she can get another word out, Subaru slams his cup on the table. Arashi moves away quickly before anything could splash on her.

“I don’t see anything unreasonable about it,” He responds frostily. He hangs his head low, so his grandmother cannot see the glare behind his bangs. But then he rises up with an overtly serene expression that could make one blink and rub their eyes to make sure they were seeing right. “As you can see, I too run a household like you do. I, too, have people that I watch over. And I also have a job I must do for the nation’s safety. Us Sumeragi, and we Sakurazuka have far moved past the point of a merger, especially with that attitude of absorbing one into the other.” He explains calmly.

 _“Maybe, in a different time, in a different place, we can come together. But not now. Not with those old-fashioned ideals.”_ The tree whispers to him and Arashi. 

“But for now, we must be a part.” Subaru gives a mourning smile to his grandmother. And this one, his grandmother recognizes, is one of true sadness. “I apologize, Obaa-san. I don’t think we’ll ever be able to see eye to eye on this matter.”

Lady Sumeragi looks down at her cup, untouched with new tea. There’s the same stubbornness she hadn’t long seen since Hokuto-chan. Out of the corner of her eye she reads the clock nearing lunch time. This conversation has been going on long enough, with no budging. She can’t use any spells or magic, not with the Sakura Tree backing up Subaru, who’s already the most powerful clan head of the Sumeragi they’ve had in decades. She’s especially in no position to fight the man in his own home, filled with wards that can activate on call at any second, given Subaru’s command.

She was lucky he didn’t want to fight her. But with one wrong move, it could easily be over. This Subaru was not the man she knew all those years ago.

There _really was_ no bringing Subaru back from this, not when he looked far more adjusted to this than any sane person should be. He was right. He could no longer be head of the clan-they needed a new one immediately. She was foolish to even think they could hold out on him.

Sighing, she takes a long drink under both Subaru and Arashi’s watchful eyes.

“You’re right. We can never see eye to eye on this Subaru-san.” She then takes a deep breath and puts the cup down and says the words she’d never thought she’d be saying at the end of this conversation.

“I suppose this is how it must be for all of us, right? You living on one side of the balance while we live on the other,” She murmurs sadly.

“Obaa-san…”

Lady Sumeragi reaches for Subaru’s hand across the table and grabs it, turning it over to see the pentagram marks Seishirou gave them all those years ago.

“Live, Subaru. And…” She rubs his soft pale skin before uttering, “I’m sorry. For all of this. For letting you out of my sight that day and for trying to take you away from all this.”

Subaru closes his eyes and places his other hand over hers. “No matter what, I was always destined to meet Seishirou, so there’s nothing to apologize for. But regardless…you’re forgiven.”

Arashi tilts her head downwards and silently gets up, leaving the two in their peace.

//…\\\

Kamui grins at the sight of the finished crispy bacon along with multiple slices of toast and a side of miso soup. It’s simple, but at least he was showing some signs of becoming a somewhat decent cook. Now if he only didn’t fuck up the scrambled eggs it be great-

 _“Looks good, kid. You’re showing some great promise.”_ The Sakura Tree’s voice rings in his mind, causing him to jump up startled. He then huffs and crosses his arms.

“You never answered my question earlier.”

_“Oh, I didn’t? And what was that question, boy?”_

“How are you talking to us? I thought only those with the connection to the Sakura could talk to you,”

There’s a warm chuckle. _“Yes, how indeed…what a wonderful question that I too, do not know the answer…”_

Kamui raises a brow at that but then the tree continues, _“Perhaps it because you show potential,”_

“Potential?” Kamui voices his confusion at the terminology before it dawns on him. “To become the next…?”

_“Well, Subaru-kun certainly isn’t going for anyone else anytime soon. So I guess that means I have to scout out my next candidates, wouldn’t you say?”_

Kamui gapes at the thought but then chuckles. The Sakura Tree hums its curiosity and confusion and Kamui has to apologize in between laughs and then force himself to stop and explain.

“I don’t think Subaru is going to let that happen, not to either one of us.”

_“So you say…but you may be right. I suppose we’ll see when the time comes,”_

“When the time comes,” Kamui repeats carelessly and then goes back to admiring his finished work. He was sure Arashi was going to love this!

//…\\\

Subaru stands by the door, watching his grandmother roll down the path to the gate that led outside his property. Arashi stands closely behind him while Kamui stands a little farther away with a plate in-hand, munching on a piece of bacon.

“Farewell, Subaru. May we never see each other again.” Lady Sumeragi says once she reaches the gate, not even turning back to face her grandson.

Subaru smiles. “Farewell, Obaa-san. May this be the end,”

No more contact, no more communication. That was the agreement between the two clan heads had reached at the end of their conversation. The Sumeragi can would continue to do their work exorcising spirits and maintaining the light of Japan while the Sakurazukamori would continue getting rid of the threats that hurt Japan’s security and safety, all while upholding the dark values. Things would go back to how it was before Hokuto’s death, when both sides were just rivals that worked separately but also in contempt for what the other did.

No relation was left between the two. Perhaps, in the future, they would see each again, when one side is on their death bed, and they look up and see the Sakurazukamori or the 12th Sumeragi Clan Head wishing them well in their final moments. But for now, there was no need to see of or know of the other and their whereabouts. 

Lady Sumeragi rolls off down the dusty road and once she reaches the getaway car, Subaru and Arashi fist-bump and Kamui chuckles to himself in amusement.

Soft tippy-toes litter the house. Subaru steps out of the office to spot Kamui and Arashi eagerly showing Yuzuriha and Keiichi around the property. The four teens chat mindlessly about school, jobs, home life. Eventually they go outside in the garden, where the camellias have died in the warm June weather but the sakura petals dance around them.

With the Sumeragi no longer on his case, and Yuzuriha and Keiichi’s endless pestering given Kamui and Arashi’s praises, Subaru finally relented allowed them over for a visit. Both CLAMP Campus students seemed impressed with the place, much to Subaru’s relief. They complimented the Victorian yet traditional styles of the house at every turn, amazed at the culture blend. Kamui and Arashi seemed satisfied as well, given how they spent the last two days cleaning the whole place, even though Subaru was certain they weren’t showing them every room available.

Walking into the kitchen, he overheard bits and pieces of their conversation.

“So you’ve really decided to live with Seichiirou-san?” Kamui’s voice questions curiously.

Subaru hears Yuzuriha’s ‘mhmm’ and she goes into a lengthy and rapid explanation. She nor Keiichi have decided to leave CLAMP Campus, but Yuzuriha took up Aoki’s offer anyways. She said: “I don’t really want to go back home and become a priestess, but staying in the mansion is so boring by myself. And now I get a little sister!”

 _“Ah right, Aoki-san did have a daughter, didn’t he? Well, it appears he gets two now,”_ Subaru muses to himself. The Sakura tree listens in but doesn’t say anything. It already got fed last night and is perfectly content with visitors in the Sakurazuka family home not being used for food later.

Upon entering, he already spots the take-out bag Keiichi had brought out of good will. It was Korean-style barbeque, specially requested by Yuzuriha to Akira. Subaru wondered if the rijicho actually knew what was going on, but he made no effort to contact them. He was certain Yuzuriha could fill in whatever gaps later. And with the Sumeragi Clan no longer pressing the issue, there really was no worry about the CLAMP Campus board doing anything to rip them a part.

He hears faint laughter enter the living room and realizes the teens are probably going to be ready for lunch soon. Subaru begins to unwrap the food from the bag and goes to heat it up to serve.

//…\\\

“So Aoki-san is coming to pick you both up?” Subaru inquires.

All five of them sit around the table, no longer a kotatsu, and eat while the television makes noise in the background. Yuzuriha nods cheerily before her eyes go wide.

“Oh no. You don’t mind that I gave him this address, right?”

Subaru shakes his head. “Of course not. Traveling into the city when it gets late isn’t safe after all,” He knew that better than anyone. And besides, Aoki was a former dragon and his teammate, he could be trusted now.

“And how is Kusanagi-san? You said you had a date coming up soon, right?” Kamui inquires.

Yuzuriha nods joyfully. “Yep! I don’t know where it is yet; he says it’s a surprise,” she says the last part like it’s a secret causing them all to laugh. But then she crosses her arms and goes deep into thought. “He has been doing a lot of work on the local parks and stuff. He’s been really giving back to the community, so maybe he’ll take me to one of those?”

 _“I do hope one of those isn’t Ueno,”_ Subaru thinks dreadfully.

 _“Please, I’d tell you if I saw a guy like that hanging around,”_ The tree responds snidely and Subaru wishes it could shoot it a mental glare.

 _“Maybe I should get you some fertilizer and regular plant nutrients for your next meal. I’m sure Kusanagi-san will offer me a good price,”_ Subaru directs his smirk at the joke Keiichi made about Aoki slowly becoming a ‘shotgun dad’ and Yuzuriha whacks his arm, insisting “It’s not like that!”. The younger teen proceeds to pout in her seat and Arashi comforts her, telling her: “It’s just concern, after all. It’s great to have someone worry over you.” Yuzuriha seems to consider this before going back to munching on some fried rice.

 _“Rude. Also, been there, done that, so you’re just asking for needless complaints.”_ The tree snarks back and Subaru rolls his eyes. Thankfully, none of the others noticed. They’ve gotten more preoccupied with something else.

“Hey, are these the flowers you bought last time?” Keiichi notes the centerpiece.

Arashi nods. “Yep, the same ones.”

“Whoa, you’ve been really up keeping them if they’ve lasted this long!”

Kamui takes this time to huff with pride. “Everyone in this house has become total experts when taking care of plants!”

“I see…I see…” Keiichi laughs in skepticism causing Kamui to go on a rant about how _totally_ true it was and you should _see_ how many plants they have over the place.

While those two are off arguing one-sidedly on the side, Yuzuriha prods the pink carnations a bit. “Mou, Kusanagi’s been telling me about the meanings about flowers and stuff, but I don’t remember these ones.”

“That’s fine,” Arashi intervenes. “I’ve done my own research about it.”

“Eh, for fun?” Yuzuriha teases.

For some reason it causes Arashi to blush but Yuzuriha carries on talking. “I know the hydrangea’s refer to being grateful and the kingprotea’s about changing one’s self but these…” Yuzuriha takes a closer look at the carnations, trying to recall what Kusanagi had told her. Arashi starts to splutter and changes the topic to how she and Kamui are going to apply for a job at a clothing store nearby. It’s enough to gain Yuzuriha’s interest and she excitedly clamors about how lucky they are because they’ll be able to get discounts. It’s also enough to knock Kamui and Keiichi out of their side conversation and get Kamui to complain about how he would have preferred to work in a grocery instead of some frilly boutique.

While the four of them go on, Subaru eyes the pink carnations for himself.

 _“Well, little flower. Your meaning sure has saved Subaru out of some tough situations, hasn’t it?”_ The tree mocks jokingly.

 _“Oh, hush your mouth,”_ Subaru responds, unable to hide his smile. It may have been an undignified meaning for someone like him to be compared to, but it was out of respect and he supposed he could appreciate that.

//…\\\

Eventually, Aoki dropped by around 7 to pick up the two teens. He didn’t stay for long, merely taking a few steps inside the house to give it a quick look around before collecting Yuzuriha and Keiichi. He greeted Subaru formally and they wished each other well before leaving. Subaru watched them drive down the road before closing up and returning to the living room.

Kamui and Arashi sat around the table, now changed out of their more eloquent clothes and settled for simple shorts and t-shirts on this warm June night. Subaru joined them and their gossip of the latest episode of some on-going drama. The television clamored behind them about the on-going news, but even with all the noise, nothing deterred them from living out their quiet days.

It was winter. Nearing 2002, even. It was hard to believe that Subaru had made it this far. He walks across the snow covered ground of Ueno Park, his dark brown boots making soft crinkle noises as he strides over to the sakura tree. _The_ Sakura Tree. It’s mid-day, but there’s not a soul on this side of the park; most people are probably bundled up and cozy in their warm houses, not wishing to be out in the cold.

He could say the same for himself, but unfortunately, today was a day he’ll be all out for. A job was due at the end of the night, but for some reason the tree had called him out here in middle of the day to talk to him in person. It baffled him as to why, especially when they had their little mind link-connection thingy going on, but he knew better than to question the tree sometimes. It was a picky, fickle creature that had strange oddities and history surrounding it. Or perhaps it supposed that its guardian didn’t visit them enough for their liking. Subaru could understand that, but couldn’t it force these visits when the weather was somewhat nicer?

He stopped short of the bark and placed a hand to it, capturing the world in a maboroshi so that it was just him and the tree.

“You don’t look too happy,” the tree comments taking in the young man’s frozen appearance.

“I’m freezing,”

“You should have worn a heavier coat then,”

Subaru glares at the tone of careless concern. As if that would change anything. And he wasn’t one much for thick, sweltering coats anyways, they always inhibited him from movement.

“What’d you call me out here for?”

His response is a light chuckle and the scatter of sakura petals on his head.

“Don’t tell me you can’t figure it out. I think it’s about high-time we talk about a successor to your position,”

Subaru’s eyes widened in shock. It hasn't even been five years for him as the Sakurazukamori. Well, it’s not like he _didn’t_ have a death wish but still…

The tree laughs and Subaru suddenly curses himself for forgetting the tree was linked to him and could tap into his worries and concerns when they arose strongly enough.

“Please, it’s nothing about that. But it doesn’t hurt to start talking now, doesn’t it? You certainly aren’t going to love again…not after…”

Subaru nods. “Yes, not after…”

The Sakurazukamori is killed by the person they loved the most, but for Subaru that person was already dead, gone by his own hand. So _who_ would be next? The tree wasn’t stupid; they’d realize this early on, so no wonder it was a concern.

“That’s why I’ve decided to take this into my own hands,” The tree says triumphantly. It whacks its own bark with a thick branch.

Subaru has to raise a questionable brow at that. “Whatever do you mean?” Was the tree just going to choose someone at random to kill Subaru when the time comes? Maybe the tree could get into contact with some distant family members that Subaru himself could never get ahold of. Maybe more Sakurazuka members did exist…

A thinner branch comes down to Subaru and twirls around his arm playfully. The tip crawls up to the pentagram marks on his hand for once, Subaru doesn’t make any attempt to stop it. It glows comfortingly, making him gasp lightly at the contact.

“Obviously, I’m talking about those two kids. Which one will it be?”

Subaru’s jaw drops and before he can retort, the tree carries on its musings.

“They’re both powerful and it never hurts to be trained late; better late than never, isn’t that what the kids say these days?”

Subaru glowers and harshly tugs on the branch wrapped around his arm. It doesn’t break but it lets ago at its guardian’s sudden aggression.

“As if I’ll let you make Kamui or Arashi the next Sakurazukamori! Putting them into this fate after everything…” It was like a slap to the face to their lives. They just got jobs at the clothing boutique near their house a few months ago. They were finally resettling into society and becoming livelier. To have that all taken away so suddenly and be thrusted into training…

Subaru shook his head. No, he couldn’t allow that.

“You’ll have to get through me first before you lay a finger on either of them,” Subaru practically hisses and the tree laughs in wonder at his response. And just at the last second, Subaru jumps back, deflecting the sudden low hanging branches that were aiming for his feet.

“Hmm, good. You’ve still got it in you. Alright then, I can wait.” The tree speaks casually, as if it didn’t just try to attack it’s guardian a mere seconds before. Subaru has to stagger a bit at the sudden shift and grits his teeth in doubt.

“You’re just giving up? Just like that?”

The tree’s whimsical voice scoffs. “There’s still time. Lots of time to make a decision.”

“ _My_ decision won’t change.”

“I’m certain of that. I was talking about _me_.”

Subaru has to blink a few times in order to fully process what was just said. “Eh?” He then walks back up to the bark fearlessly and rests his back to it. “I thought you wanted one of them to be the next Sakurazukamori?”

The tree gives an undignified sigh. “Admittedly, I’m not too keen on the idea of either of them. But looking forward to all the options, there’s really no one else capable. Both of them are just barely scratching the bare minimum for what I’m looking for really,”

Subaru crosses his arms and glances back to the tree for a second, utterly bemused at the rare sight of desperation. “Something tells me you’re letting _a_ _certain someone_ influence your opinion just a _tad_ bit.” He chides, recalling a certain dark figure in his life.

“You’re just above the minimal requirements as well too, you know.” The tree reminds him.

“I’m well aware, however, are you saying if there really is no one else, and Kamui and Arashi lose their show of promise…perhaps you’ll just give up existing?”

Another husky scoff from the eternally blossoming tree. “As if. But perhaps I’ll have you look into some methods that’ll keep me sustained for a few centuries until someone worthy shows up,”

Subaru grins to himself. “We’ll see how long that takes.”

“We still have plenty of miles down the road to go and see where it brings us,”

Subaru looks up puzzled and finds himself staring into a plethora of cherry blossoms.

“Miles? We don’t use that here,”

“Aha, yes, that’s true. My, look at me being so old-fashioned. I must have heard it from somewhere,” the tree responds dodgy and ever-free. Subaru shakes his head at their antics and hops off, walking down from the high bark and onto the ground below.

He flicks his hand in the air, ready to close the maboroshi and whispers something that could barely be heard above the endless flowing of the Sakura petals around them.

“See you tonight, Seishirou.”

Subaru fades out of the illusion and is back standing on pristine white snow. He pulls out a Mild Seven from his pocket and lights it as he walks out of the park. When he makes it outside, he notices a soft flutter of white pass him. Soon it begins to sink into his cream coat.

Looking up, it’s begun to snow. Subaru wonders how Kamui and Arashi are holding up at their jobs and what should be for dinner later tonight. Realizing it's been a while since he’s cooked, he makes a left towards the nearest grocery to pick up ingredients for nikujaga.

//…\\\

“See you tonight, Subaru.”

.

.

.

FIN.

**Author's Note:**

> A lot of things in this fic come from both in-story details and my personal headcanons-especially when it comes to Sakurazuka and Sumeragi lore. I hope it wasn't confusing for anyone!
> 
> The original version of this fic is still on my FF.net account, though it's broken up into chapters instead of being one single read. If you go there you can go see the silly chapter names and my author's notes per chapter. I was going to break this version up into chapters too, but I think the story is better read like this instead. What I will say here though is that the working title for this fic was "The Dead Boyfriends Club" and was supposed to focus on Subaru, Arashi and Kamui living together and coping with Seishirou, Sorata and Fuuma's deaths. But then I thought I should focus on other characters who I thought would survive the Final Day as well. Writing Yuzuriha, Aoki and Kusanagi proved to be very difficult! 
> 
> And finally, even though I like to think this is how X ends, I know if it ever does end it definitely won't be like this. Thanks for reading!


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